New Delhi: According to an official memorandum issued, seven names have been shortlisted and are in contention for the post of Chairman and Managing Director of the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC).
The shortlisted candidates include: Ranjit Rath, Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Oil India Limited; Rajshri Gupta, Managing Director of ONGC Videsh; and Vikram Saxena, Director for Technology and Field Services. They are followed by Satyam Kumar, Director for Strategy and Corporate Affairs; Dulal Halder, Director for Operations at ONGC Videsh; Devendra Kumar, Director for Finance at Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL); and SP Shrivastava, Director for Marketing at Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL).
Among the candidates, Ranjit Rath is applying for the post for the second consecutive time after being shortlisted in the previous cycle; and Rajshri Gupta became eligible after the age criteria was raised to 59.
After the government reworked the eligibility criteria for the opening, it also widened the pool for applications for the opening; candidates from other central public sector undertakings, state-owned energy companies, and private sector energy firms were all made eligible. However, there were no private takers, as all seven shortlisted individuals belonged to ONGC and the petroleum public sector.
The memorandum also mentioned the formation of a Search-Cum-Selection Committee (SCSC), which will preside over the appointment. The committee trio will include the chairperson of the Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) as the Chairperson, the secretary of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas as an ex officio member, and an outside expert described as a former chairman of Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL).
This committee would make the appointment rather than the PSEB's standard selection process. ONGC last went through a full CMD selection process in 2022. The committee then comprised PSEB Chairperson Mallika Srinivasan, Petroleum Secretary Pankaj Jain, and former Indian Oil Chairman B Ashok as the outside expert.
The applications were closed in late June; however, the chair will vacate the post on December 7, 2026. Arun Kumar Singh currently serves as Chairman and Managing Director of ONGC. Singh joined the company in 2022; formerly, he was the chairman of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL). He became the first person to head a Maharatna public sector undertaking after retirement and was given a one-year extension in December 2025.