BPCL CMD Jobs: BPCL invites applications for Chairman and Managing Director, fill the form by this date..
BPCL CMD Recruitment: The Oil Ministry has invited applications for the post of Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL). This decision comes six months after the recommendation of a search-cum-selection committee, which was formed to identify a suitable candidate for the top post. The deadline for submitting applications is October 21.
It states, "The selection will be made through a search-cum-selection committee."
Board-level appointments in public sector enterprises are typically made based on the recommendations of the government's official headhunter, the Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB).
PESB interviews a dozen candidates
PESB typically advertises vacancies months in advance, interviews shortlisted candidates, and submits its recommendations to the government. The final appointment is made after due scrutiny by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC), headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
In the case of BPCL, the PESB interviewed a dozen candidates, including BPCL Director (Finance) Vetsa Ramakrishna Gupta and its Director (Refineries) Sanjay Khanna, but found none suitable for the job.
According to the PESB's February 1 notification, it advised the administrative ministry to "determine the appropriate course of further action for selection, including a Search-cum-Selection Committee."
New Selection Committee Formed for BPCL CMD
On March 24, the ACC constituted a three-member Search-cum-Selection Committee (SCSC) headed by PESB Chairperson Mallika Srinivasan. According to an order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training, Petroleum Secretary Pankaj Jain is the other member of the committee, while former Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL) MK Surana has been included in the panel as a distinguished external expert.
Outgoing G Krishnakumar retired as BPCL CMD on April 30 this year. Director (Refineries) Sanjay Khanna was given the additional charge of CMD.
BPCL is the fourth oil sector company for which the PESB has failed to find a suitable candidate since 2021. In May 2023, the PESB made no recommendation for the top post of Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), and the task was then handed over to an SCSC.
That panel selected Arvinder Singh Sawhney, who had never previously served on the IOC board, for the top post of India's largest oil company in November 2024.
PESB's Challenges for CMD Positions in the Oil Sector
In June last year, the PESB interviewed eight candidates, including a director on the HPCL board and the managing director of Indraprastha Gas Limited, for the post of CMD of HPCL, but rejected all of them.
The top post at HPCL, which was vacant since Pushp Kumar Joshi retired on August 31, 2024, was filled with the appointment of Vikas Kaushal on March 17, 2025. Kaushal was previously with the global consulting firm AT Kearney.
Earlier in June 2021, the PESB had reached a similar conclusion that none of the people interviewed while searching for a candidate for the top post at Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) were found suitable.
