M Rajeshwar Rao appointed RBI deputy governor; banker succeeds NS Vishwanathan

The government on Wednesday appointed RBI’s senior-most executive director M Rajeshwar Rao as the deputy governor of the central bank. Rao was appointed to the post vacated by NS Vishwanathan, who stepped down three months ahead of his extended tenure on health grounds. “The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of M Rajeshwar Rao, Executive Director, Reserve Bank of India to the post of Deputy Governor Reserve Bank of India (RBI),” a notification by the Department of Personnel and Training said. Rao was elevated as executive director in November 2016. He is currently looking after Internal Debt Management Department, International Department and Financial Markets Operation Department. An economics graduate and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Cochin, Rao joined RBI in 1984. As a career central banker, he has exposure in various aspects of the central bank’s functioning. He has previously held charge of the Risk Monitoring Department. He has also worked as the Banking Ombudsman, New Delhi and in the Reserve Bank’s regional offices at Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Chennai and New Delhi. According to the RBI Act, 1934, the central bank needs to have four deputy governors – two from within the ranks, one commercial banker and another an economist to head the monetary policy department. The RBI’s other three deputy governors are BP Kanungo, MK Jain and Michael Debabrata Patra. Earlier this year, the government extended Kanungo’s tenure by a year with effect from 3 April, 2020. Kanungo, whose term was to end on 2 April, had taken charge as deputy governor in April 2017. The deputy governor appointments are made for an initial period of three years and the person is eligible for reappointment. The deputy governor gets a fixed salary of Rs 2.25 lakh per month plus allowances.