Search on for next chief of Competition Commission

The government has begun a search process to find the next chairperson of fair trade regulator Competition Commission of India (CCI) after the end of the tenure of D K Sikri later this year.

Inviting applications for the post, the Corporate Affairs Ministry said the CCI chairperson will be paid a consolidated monthly salary of ~0.45 million, but would not be entitled to house and car.

Sikri, who is the third chairman of CCI, had assumed office in January 2016, replacing another former bureaucrat Ashok Chawla.

Sikri's tenure of about twoand-a-half years will end this July after he attains 65 years of age. To fill this vacancy, the Corporate Affairs Ministry on Saturday invited applications from eligible Indian nationals for the post. The applications need to be submitted by July 2. The CCI has gained importance in recent years with all major deals requiring its approval, while it has also been keeping a close vigil for any attempts at cartelisation or other unfair trade practices in various sectors, including real estate, automotive, coal, aviation and banking.

Among major deals, Walmart’s mega-billion dollar acquisition of Flipkart is awaiting CCI approval.

The Commission was established in 2003 to replace the erstwhile Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission.