CALCUTTA, May 13: The public sector steel-makers are in for a leadership crisis with several top posts lying vacant and others due to open up soon.Rashtriya Ispat Nigam is headless, and Steel Authority of India is without an operations director, while its commercial director is due totretire soon.

There is also talk that former SAIL chairman M R R Nair, who joined Ispat International of the UK-based Mittals recently after his retirement from SAIL last November, may poach some talent from the public sector steel giant.The steel ministry is worried not only over the vacancies but also over the changes that will follow when persons within the organisations move up.

"It is unfortunate that the uncertainty comes at a time when there is talk of SAIL being granted more autonomy as one of the PSU navaratnas," a steel ministry official told The Financial Express.

The situation is likely to hit SAIL the most, as it is already expected to report a sharp drop in net profit for 1996-97.

RINL, which runs the most modern public sector steel plant, was affected by the recent political uncertainty at the centre. Chairman & managing director J Mehra, who led RINL's recovery from a near-disastrous project delay, retired in March. He joined Essar Steel after retirement.

Although the public enterprises selection board (PESB) held a series of interviews for the post, the two persons shortlisted are yet to get the mandatory clearance from the Central Bureau of Investigation.

Rourkela Steel Plant managing director B N Singh and SAIL director (raw materials)GS Garcha were shortlisted by PESB for the RINL chief's post.Singh allegedly had granted `undue favour' on a party in 1993 when he was Indian Iron & Steel executive (Iisco) director (works) at Burnpur in West Bengal, CBI informed the steel ministry. Singh had extended the term of a contractor engaged earlier for handling of raw materials.

While the case appears to be frivolous, the timing is crucial as Garcha was number two on the shortlist. The government rule book says that a person facing a CBI probe cannot be appointed to a higher position till the case is decided.

Garcha's chances have also been hit by a 1993 case in which income tax officials unearthed Rs 3 crore in cash from his residence when he was Iisco general manager, Chasnala colliery. The case may now be revived.

Steel ministry sources said that they do not want to keep RINL headless for long. But they also rule out any more interviews.

In SAIL, the post of operations director has been vacant for nearly seven months. The post of commercial director will also fall vacant shortly as incumbent U K Mittal is due to retire.

Meanwhile, SAIL is proceeding to fill the post of research & development director. PESB has recommended the names of two current executive directors, S Bhattacharya and Sanak Misra, in that order after the retirement of S Banerjee.

SAIL sources said that when the top post in RINL is filled up there would be a series of movements within the steel major and the consequent vacancies would be filled up after PESB interviews.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.