Nalco continues to be led by short-tenure helmsmen

The senior most director (personnel and administration) of Nalco, G Upadhyaya today took over charge as acting chairman cum managing director of the company on the superannuation of the incumbent acting chairman and managing director S K Banerjee.

In normal circumstances it would have looked like a ritualistic change of guards in the corporate body. But here, the event has brought to the fore the big vacuum in the top management of the company - an issue stalking this blue chip public enterprise for some time now.

The permanent CMD of Nalco, C Venkataramana, had gone on leave from March this year upon the direction of the Union mines ministry after a lady employee of the company's Mumbai office levelled charges of misdemeanour against him. Following this, the then senior most director (projects), Banerjee had taken over charge as the acting CMD.

Now with the retirement of Banerjee, the post of director, project, has also fallen vacant, while there has been no director, production, in the company since the previous incumbent retired in 2002.

To make the matters worse, the director, commercial, B N Jha, is slated to attain superannuation in October.

Even Nalco's director, personnel and administration, G Upadhyaya, who will be taking over charge as acting CMD from tomorrow, has a very short tenure of five months left. He is supposed to retire in January 2005.

This has rendered the company virtually rudderless, particularly at a time when it is awaiting the sanction of the Central government to embark on a Rs 4,000 crore expansion programme.

In the proposed expansion plan, the company envisaged expansion of bauxite mines capacity to 63 lakh tonne, alumina capacity to 21 lakh tonne, aluminium capacity to 21 lakh tonne, aluminium capacity to 4.60 lakh tonne and power plant to 1200 mw.

After being cleared by public investment board (PIB), the plan is now awaiting the nod of the cabinet committee on economic affairs before implementation, pointed out the sources.

At this crucial juncture when it required vigorous persuasion and negotiation with the Central leaders for early clearance of the project, the vacancy at the director level posts and absence of a permanent CMD at the helm are likely to delay the clearance process, they added.

Sources said, though interviews were conducted for filling up director posts lying or likely to fall vacant shortly some time back and names were short-listed for the purpose, the Centre is yet to notify the necessary appointments.