Inside Raisina Hill: Weekly Wrap From The Power Corridor-II

As one walks down the Hill along the Rajpath, now renamed Kartavya Path, come other edifices — Rail Bhavan, Krishi Bhavan, and Shashtri Bhavan on one side and Sena Bhavan, Udyog Bhavan, and Vanijya Bhavan on the other. The bureaucrats who adorn the offices in these buildings decide on India's economic, social, and industrial policies. There are many tales to be told from the corridors of these grandiose buildings. We let you in on some of them here in this week's edition of "Inside Raisina Hill".  

Behind Shaktikanta Move: Stepping Stone Or Super-PMO?

Is Shaktikanta Das’s elevation to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), a stepping stone to a Cabinet berth, or is it a way of strengthening an already super-strong PMO?

That is the question which is being asked by many in the corridors of power. If it’s a stepping stone, then Das may yet be another bureaucrat-turned-minister in the NDA government like Hardeep Singh Puri or Ashwini Vaishnaw. 

While P K Mishra as Principal Secretary-I will continue as custodian of personnel affairs, the former RBI Governor as Principal Secretary-II may well be the man looking into the big-ticket macro picture, along with Cabinet Secretary T V Somanathan. 

Some feel this new combination could diminish the role of the Finance Ministry quite a bit, regardless of who is the finance minister, as department heads in North Bloc will look up to the Das-Somanathan duo, but that’s another story.

What has mandarins scratching their heads is the role distinction between Mishra and Das, both retired IAS officers.

A section of bureaucrats think Das has been appointed in the PMO as an eventual successor to P K Mishra, as was the case when the latter was taken on board as Additional Principal Secretary while Nripendra Mishra was Principal Secretary to PM Modi. When Nripendra moved out of the PMO, PK was elevated in his place.

But another section believes Das as PS-2 will be stepping into Nripendra Mishra’s shoes to handle the big-ticket macro picture and yet others feel he may be made a minister when the Narendra Modi government decides to go in for a reshuffle. 

Das also brings a language advantage to the PMO, as he knows Odiya and Tamil, which will be handy while doing business with the two crucial coastal states. 

Where Are The Independent PSU Directors?

Lack of timely decisions has left vacant some 600 independent directors' posts in central public sector units.  

The role of an independent director is not to get directly involved in day-to-day operations of a company, but to ensure good corporate governance as a non-executive member of the board, and to protect shareholder interest.

The Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) has been running under secretaries who have been given the department as an additional charge, ever since the superannuation of Ali Raza Rizvi last July. The first to be given additional responsibility of DPE was the then Finance Secretary Tuhin K Pandey, who has now become the SEBI Chairman.

Sources close to Pandey claimed he had initially given the DPE a target to fill up around half of the total existing vacancies by end-2024. But given that he was himself burdened with additional responsibilities — including that of DoPT and Revenue Secretary — he ultimately fell short in achieving his own target.

In January 2025, Arunish Chawla — who was originally appointed the head of the Revenue Department — was given additional charge of DPE. 

Like Pandey, Chawla has multiple responsibilities, including as the secretary of both the Ministry of Culture and the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM). This means that operations of DPE will continue to be an additional charge.

Govt Flipflop On Lateral Entry 

Behind the idea of lateral entry in central government positions was the objective of introducing talent from outside the bureaucratic pool. But the government backtracked on its own wisdom after facing objections from various quarters, including NDA allies.

But in a recent move, the Union government has appointed Vikas Kaushal, an executive from the management consulting firm Kearney India, as Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL). 

This decision caused significant heartburn among public sector officials, particularly within HPCL’s top hierarchy, as traditionally, PSUs such as HPCL have elevated one of their own Directors, or someone of equivalent stature from another sister PSU to the post. 

In fact, many senior HPCL officials were interviewed for the position, but didn’t make the cut. 

This has set off a ripple effect across other PSUs. BPCL's senior officials, in particular, are now feeling anxious, as they fear the move will be repeated in their company too.

Race Hots Up For NTPC CMD

The buzz in the corridors of Delhi’s Shram Shakti Bhawan — where the Ministry of Power is located — is all about who will become the next CMD (Chairman and Managing Director) of NTPC. 

Here too, over half a dozen candidates — both internal and external — are in serious contention. They include NTPC Director (Fuel) Shivam Srivastava; NTPC Director (Operations) Ravindra Kumar; Tehri Hydro Power Director (Technical) Bhupendra Gupta; Concor Director (Projects & Services) Ajit K Panda; Coal India Director (Marketing) Mukesh Chaudhary; GSECL MD Somes Bandyopadhyay; and 1997 batch Sikkim cadre IAS officer Sanoj Kumar Jha.

With current CMD Gurdeep Singh set to retire in July, the candidates have started all-out campaigns to become the CMD. So, if any of them visit the Ministry of Power, the rest immediately start trying to find out who they have met.

This has suddenly raised the importance of peons at the building. After all, no one knows who met whom better than them.

NTPC, SAIL, ONGC and Indian Oil Ltd are considered key PSUs whose CMDs have a rank equivalent to that of a Secretary to the Union government. Hence, the selection is being keenly watched by many in and outside government.

No Respite For Indians Despite Falling Global Crude Prices 

Will diesel and petrol prices finally come down? With global crude prices falling amid a possible all-out global trade war, senior government sources indicated that the states may be nudged to reduce domestic fuel prices. Like alcohol, petroleum is not covered under GST.   

Sample this: On February 11, the price of WTI crude stood at over US$ 73 per barrel. Within a month, it has fallen to less than US$ 67 a barrel. Similarly, Brent crude, which cost US$ 77 on February 11, is now less than US$ 70.

“We’re hoping that domestic fuel prices will come down soon, so that the state governments can lower VAT, which will bring the much-needed relief,” an official said.

Price of petrol in metros like Mumbai and Kolkata is over Rs 100 a litre, while in New Delhi and Ahmedabad, it is just below Rs 95 a litre. Diesel is priced at about Rs 90 a litre in Ahmedabad, while it is about Rs 87.60 a litre in Delhi.

It's not just lower crude prices globally. The oil marketing companies (OMCs) have managed to expand their bottomlines as well. Though financial results for OMCs in 2024-25 were a tad disappointing — driven by higher inventories and losses owing to LPG — their overall profits have been “stellar”, as Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Puri pointed out recently.

Higher fuel prices affect prices of daily and essential items, leading to inflation. Economists have pointed out that higher household monthly expenditure decreases overall consumption, something that concerns policymakers.

While the OMCs have been reluctant to reduce prices due to lower profit margins, expectations of lower fuel prices are now building up.

The billion-dollar question is: Will BJP-ruled states take the lead in reducing petrol and diesel prices?

Contributed by Pawan Kumar, Mahua Sengupta Venkatesh & Jayanta Roy Chowdhury; anchored by Abhijit Mukhopadhyay