The Centre on Saturday notified the appointments of the chiefs of four state-owned banks.
On the basis of the order, Albert Tauro, executive director, Central Bank of India has taken over as the chairman & managing director of Bangalore-based Vijaya Bank. KR Kamath, executive director (ED), Bank of India and RS Reddy, ED, Union Bank of India have assumed charge as the CMD of Allahabad Bank and Andhra Bank, respectively, while George Joseph, ED, Syndicate Bank, has been elevated to the chairman?s post.
This reflects some changes from what was believed to have been planned earlier.
Except for Joseph, the rest of the three EDs, along with SC Gupta, ED, Bank of Baroda, were believed to have been short-listed for the promotions earlier and had given their consent. This seems to have now been changed.
Sources said Joseph was not considered for the promotion earlier, as he has just nine months to go for retirement and the minimum residual services required to qualify for chairmanship of any state-owned bank as fixed by the government is two years.
However, Joseph?s name was included later, and his appointment was cleared by the appropriate authorities. It is not, however, clear what happens to the promotion of BoB?s Gupta. In an earlier list believed to have been prepared by the ministry of finance, Gupta was to head Andhra Bank, while Kamath and Reddy were supposed to be elevated as the CMDs of Allahabad Bank and Syndicate Bank.
With these appointments, the government has filled up all the vacancies at the CMD level of state-owned banks, which had fallen vacant in recent times.
K Ramakrishnan, who retired as the CMD of Andhra Bank on July 31, will take over as the new chief executive officer of Indian Banks? Association (IBA) on August 4.
The government would now appoint executive directors to the banks where vacancies have arisen following these appointments. Bank of India is now waiting for the appointment of two EDs. The exercise to appoint EDs will be completed in one month, said banking sources.