Oil Ministry Invites Applications for BPCL Top Job

The Oil Ministry has invited applications for the post of chairman and managing director of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), over six months after a search-cum-selection committee was constituted to identify a suitable candidate for the top job.

The ministry in a post on its website invited applications for the top job at India's second-largest state-owned refinery by October 21.

"Selection shall be through a search-cum-selection committee," it said.

Board-level appointments at public sector enterprises are typically made based on recommendations from the Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB), the government’s official headhunter. PESB usually advertises vacancies months in advance, conducts interviews of shortlisted candidates, and forwards its recommendation to the government. The final appointment is made by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC), headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after due vetting.

In case of BPCL, 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.

It advised the administrative ministry "to choose an appropriate course of further action for selection including the search-cum-selection committee," according to the February 1 notification of PESB.

On March 24, the ACC constituted a three-member search-cum-selection committee (SCSC) headed by PESB chairperson Mallika Srinivasan. Oil 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 drawn on the panel as outside expert of eminence, according to an order issued by Department of Personnel and Training.

Incumbent G Krishnakumar superannuated as CMD of BPCL on April 30 this year. Sanjay Khanna, Director (Refineries), was given the additional charge of CMD.

BPCL is the fourth company in the oil sector where PESB couldn't find a suitable candidate since 2021. PESB in May 2023 did not make any recommendation for the top post at Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and the task was then entrusted to an SCSC. That panel picked Arvindar Singh Sahney - who had never been on the IOC board - for the top job at India's largest oil firm in November 2024.

In June last year, PESB interviewed eight candidates, including a director on HPCL board and managing director of Indraprastha Gas Ltd, for the post of CMD at HPCL but rejected them all.

HPCL's top position which was lying vacant since August 31, 2024, when Pushp Kumar Joshi superannuated, was filled with the appointment of Vikas Kaushal on March 17, 2025. Kaushal was with global consulting firm A T Kearney before this.

Previously in June 2021, PESB reached a similar conclusion of finding none of those interviewed suitable while looking for a candidate for the top job at Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC).

A year later, an SCSC picked Arun Kumar Singh, who had retired as the former chairman and managing director of BPCL, for that job. Singh's three-year tenure ends in December 2025.

Surana was also part of the selection committee to find the head of IOC.

Unlike ONGC where the government relaxed age limit criteria to make Arun Kumar Singh eligible for consideration, the advertisement for top job at BPCL makes no such concession.

Internal candidates (those currently employed with BPCL) must have two years of residual service while outsiders must have three years before they reach the superannuation age of 60 years.

The two years and three years residual service for internal and external candidates should be as on the date of vacancy, the ministry's post said.

BPCL chairman and managing director's post fell vacant on April 30.

Eligible private sector as well as central government and armed forces personnel can also apply.

Any candidate unwilling to join after an interview is done or after a job offer is made, will be debarred for two years from being considered for a board level post in any central public sector enterprise (CPSE), the post said.