Oil ministry looks for technocrat to head DGH

New Delhi: Ten months after a bureaucrat was appointed as DGH, the oil ministry has begun looking for a technocrat to the head the upstream oil regulatory body.

The oil ministry has advertised for for an engineer or geoscientist with 25 years of experience in upstream oil and gas sector to replace Rajiv Nayan Choubey as the Director General of the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH).[caption id=“attachment_712590” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Petroleum challenges. Reuters[/caption]

The government had in June last year appointed Choubey, a 1981 batch IAS officer of Tamil Nadu cadre, as DGH.

The appointment of a bureaucrat as the head of the highly technical arm of the oil ministry had raised eyebrows then as it was not clear how the selection was made without the post being advertised. There was also no selection panel formed to choose among eligible candidates, it was pointed out.

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“Applications with detailed bio-data and two references should be sent by May 10,” the advertisement said.

The term of DG, DGH will be for five years or till the incumbent completes the age of superannuation of 60 years whichever is earlier, it said.

Listing out educational qualification for the post, the advertisement said the candidate should hold Master’s Degree in Science, Geology, Geo-Physics or Petroleum Engineering or a Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering/Technology. PhD or Master of Business Administration (MBA) in related field of Science/Engineering/Technology would be desirable.

The applicant should have “at least 25 years in upstream oil sector with direct involvement in planning, execution and monitoring of projects and in exploration and development plans for oil and natural gas, out of which at least three years should be in the scale of a Joint Secretary to the

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Government of India or equivalent”, it said.

Choubey, a post-graduate in Physics, was development commissioner (handlooms) in the Ministry of Textiles before becoming DG, DGH.

He was appointed head of DGH after the then DG, DGH, SK Srivastava moved to Oil India Ltd as the chairman and managing director.

Srivastava, who was director (operations) at Oil India in 2009, was made the temporary head of DGH to replace the controversial VK Sibal, in October 2009. He was formally appointed DG, DGH in February, 2010. Prior to his temporary charge, he was deputy, DG, DGH under Sibal.

PTI