The direction follows a meeting chaired by the cabinet secretary, TV Somanathan, last month on the functioning of strategic CPSEs. Participants flagged concerns over three dozen vacant board-level positions and prolonged ‘additional charge’ arrangements at the meeting. “The latest trigger was that one of the leading CPSEs was sitting on an important project for three months just because the post was vacant and the person in charge was reluctant in giving approval,” a senior official told ET, requesting anonymity.
As of February 2026, 53 CPSEs, including key entities such as Bharat Petroleum Corp (BPCL), BSNL, MTNL and MMTC, were operating without full-time Chairman and Managing Directors (CMDs), relying on interim “additional charge” arrangements.
The department of public enterprises has sent instructions to all the ministries overseeing CPSEs last week to identify pending vacancies, fast-track the selection process and ensure proposals move through the approval chain without delay.
Succession Planning
Also, they are asked to start looking for candidates at least six months in advance.
The exercise will cover posts including chairman and managing director (CMD), managing director (MD) and functional directors, including finance, operations, projects and human resources.Several CPSEs continue to be run by executives holding additional charge of top positions pending regular appointments.
In its report on the demand for grants, tabled in March this year, the parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance headed by BJP leader Bhartruhari Mahtab said key vacancies are dragging the performance of CPSEs.
The shortage of independent directors is even more acute, with 533 positions vacant out of a sanctioned 758, implying a nearly 70% vacancy rate. Appointments to CMD and director-level posts are made through the Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB), followed by approvals from the administrative ministry and the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC).
Officials said the multi-stage process, while ensuring scrutiny, often creates a gap between the retirement of an incumbent and the appointment of a successor.
As a result, ministries frequently assign additional charge to an existing director or the head of another CPSE until a regular appointment is made.
While the arrangement ensures continuity, officials said such arrangements, originally intended as a short-term measure, have in several cases continued for months, with one executive simultaneously handling multiple responsibilities.