Govt sets up search panel under DEA Secy for NIIF CEO

Government has set up a search committee under Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das for selection of a CEO for the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF). The other members of the search-cum-selection committee are Financial Services Secretary Anjuly Chib Duggal, SBI Chairperson Arundhati Bhattacharya, NIPFP Director Rathin Roy and economist Rajiv Kumar. "A Search-cum-Selection Committee has been constituted under the Chairmanship of Shaktikanta Das, Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs for selecting a CEO for the Investment Management Company under the NIIF," a Finance Ministry statement said.

The Investment Management Company would be responsible for taking investment decision of NIIF corpus. The government's share in the corpus shall not exceed 49 percent. "The salary of the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company would be market linked and he would be expected to achieve ambitious performance goals with rigorous management output," the statement added.

It said the shareholding of the company would reflect the investments in the corpus by various investors and the salaries of the investment team would be market linked. The Cabinet had in July cleared setting up of NIIF. The fund will have a dual role of equity capital infusion in projects as well as getting the due diligence done for investment in infrastructure projects and have investors available for them.

The NIIF will be established as a Trust/other legal entity from the point of view of taxation and flexibility. The governing council of the NIIF would have government representatives and experts in international finance, eminent economists and infrastructure professionals. It could include representatives from other non-government shareholders.

"The terms and period of appointment of the governing council of the NIIF will be as decided by the government. The governing council will oversee the activities of the Trust and will be constituted as a separate legal entity, if necessary," the finance ministry statement added.