Company sources told The Financial Express that the 46-year-old Narayan, who joined ICI India in 1994, will be moving into ICI's international operations. They said Rajiv L Jain, now executive director in charge of the explosives business, is expected to take over as the managing director. The 47-year-old Jain, who joined ICI India in 1983, is also a member of the executive and corporate management teams.

ICI India, however, sidestepped questions about Narayan and Jain. Executive director MR Rajaram, in a faxed reply, said: "The only change that has taken place off late is that Dr Sekhar Raha has stepped down from the board of ICI India. We will keep you informed of other changes as and when they happen."

Later, when asked specifically on thetelephone about Narayan's possible move, Rajaram repeated his faxed statement and again did not comment on Narayan.

Raha resigned from ICI India's board effective on August 1, 1998, and will be retiring on September 30 this year. The 54-year-old Raha will be associated with the company as an advisor.

According to the sources, Raha's exit was a matter of time as, being a part of the old guard at ICI India, he was not in tune with the younger executives in senior positions in the company.

The sources also hinted at the exit of S H Venkatramani, who joined as vice-president for corporate communication last October. They said Venkatramani is not getting along with the top management.

Rajaram refused to comment on this issue, too, while responding to specific queries.