APPOINTMENTS (November 2012 to March 2013)

INTERNATIONAL

Mir Hazar Khan Khoso- Justice Retd. Mir Hazar Khan Khoso took oath as the sixth caretaker Prime Minister of Pakistan on 25 March 2013 in Islamabad. The oath was administered by President Asif Ali Zardari at the ceremony which was held at Aiwan-e-Sadr. The earlier five caretaker Prime Ministers of Pakistan were- Ghulam Mustafa Khan Jatoi (6 August 1990-6 November 1990), Mir Balakh Sher Mazari (18 April 1993-26 May 1993), Moin Qureshi (8 July 1993-19 October 1993), Malik Meraj Khalid (6 October 1996-17 February 1997) and Muhammad Mian Soomro (16 November 2007-24 March 2008).

Khil Raj Regmi -Chief Justice Khil Raj Regmi was sworn-in as the new Prime Minister of Nepal on 14 March 2013. Khil Raj Regmi will be the head of interim government which will have its elections by 21 June 2013. He took over the office from Baburam Bhattarai.

Jorge Bergoglio -The cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church chose Argentine Jorge Bergoglio on 13 March 2013 as the new Pope. The new pope chose Francis as his Papal Name. He is the first non-European pope in almost 1300 years and first pontiff from the Americas. A Pope sits in the Vatican City. 

Nicolas Maduro- Venezuelan Vice- President Nicolas Maduro on 8 March 2013 was sworn in as Venezuela’s acting president, despite the Opposition resistance as it is being considered to the violation of the country’s constitution. As per the country's 1999 constitution, the National Assembly speaker becomes interim president in the event of a president-elect's death or inability to be sworn in. The constitution also says new elections should be called within 30 day.

Park Geun-hye- Park Geun-hye sworn-in as the first woman President of South Korea on 25 February 2013. After swearing-in, she vowed for zero tolerance against nuclearised North Korea as well as economic prosperity of the country. Park Geun-hye took charge of the office of the President of South Korea just a little over 50 years after Park Chung-hee, her father had taken over the office in 1961.

Rafael Correa- Ecuador's President Rafael Correa was re-elected for a third term with more than 50 percent of the vote according to the election results declared in the third week of February 2013. As per the results, Rafael Correa got 56.7 percent while his closest competitor Guillermo could secure only 23.3 percent.

Milos Zeman- Milos Zeman became Czech Republic’s first directly elected President as per the Czech Republic Presidential election results declared on 25 January 2013. He won 55 percent as compared with 45 percent of Karel Schwarzenberg. Milos Zeman is the former Prime Minister of Czech Republic and head of the Party of Civic Rights-Zemanovci (SPOZ) while Karel Schwarzenberg is foreign minister in the present centre-right coalition government. Zeman succeeds Vaclav Klaus as the President of Czech Republic. 

Sally Jewell- US President Barack Obama nominated Sally Jewell, a retail executive and outdoor enthusiast on 6 February 2013 as the U.S. interior secretary for looking after the huge energy reserves as well as the national parks. Obama while nominating Jewell described her as an expert on climate issues and energy issues. 

Halimah Yacob- Halimah Yacob  became the first woman and the 9th Speaker of the Singapore Parliament on 14 January 2013. She replaced Michael Palmer, the former People's Action Party MP. Palmer got down from the post of Speaker of the Parliament and as an MP on 12 December 2012. Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong nominated her for the designation of speaker. 

Srikanth Srinivasan -Indian-American Srikanth Srinivasan on 4th January 2013 re-nominated by US President Barack Obama as Federal Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit. Srikanth Srinivasan is among the 33 federal judges re-nominated by the President Barack Obama for the US Court of Appeals and the only Indian American re-nominated by Obama for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Shinzo Abe-  Shinzo Abe the conservative leader of Japan was elected as the prime minister of the country by lower house of the Parliament called the House of Representatives, on 26 December 2012. Shinzo Abe took oath to rebuild Japanese economy as well as mend the coalition with US.

Ernest Bai Koroma  Sierra Leone, the incumbent President Ernest Bai Koroma, leader of the All People's Congress was re-elected as the President of the nation on 23 November 2012 after the electoral body declared results of the elections that took place in the country in third week of November. He had sworn in as the President of Sierra Leone on the same day, when the results were declared. He won the Presidential elections by securing 58.7 percent votes in his favour. 

Joaquim Barbosa- Joaquim Barbosa was sworn-in as Brazil's Supreme Court's first non-White President on 23 November 2012 at a packed ceremony in the capital Brazilia. Barbosa became famous in Brazil after overseeing one of the country's biggest corruption trials involving key members of the former President Lula Da Silva's government.

Rafael Benitez- Chelsea Football Club on 22 November 2012 officially announced the appointment of Rafael Benitez as their new interim manager. Rafael Benitez who is the former Liverpool manager is going to replace Roberto Di Matteo who was sacked on 21 November 2012. Rafael Benitez is 52 Years old and became Chelsea's ninth manager since Roman Abramovich was the first owner in 2003.

Tony Hall- Royal Opera House chief executive Tony Hall on 22 November 2012 was appointed as director general of the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation). Tony Hall is due to take up his post in early March 2013 when acting Director General Tim Davie steps down. Tony Hall is replacing George Entwistle, who resigned on 10 November 2012 over the corporation's reporting of child sex abuse.

Xi Jinping- The Communist Party of China (CPC) on 15 November 2012 declared Xi Jinping as the new General Secretary of the Party’s seven-member Politburo standing committee. Xi Jinping is the son of the former politburo and vice premier. Xi’s selection as the new leader, the Communist Party of China has marked the end of Hu Jintao’s ten year term as the General Secretary of the Party, but he will continue as the President till March 2013, the month when the Chinese Parliament would meet. Li Keqiang, the second-ranked member of the Politburo standing committee would take over as Premier in March 2013 after Wen Jiabao will step down from his position. 

Shanti Gandhi- Shanti Gandhi, a great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi was elected to a State Assembly in the United States during the general elections held on 6 November 2012.  Shanti Gandhi contested as a Republican Party candidate and had defeated his Democratic rival Theodore “Ted” Ensley by nine percentage point for the Kansas’s 52nd Assembly District. Shanti Gandhi went US in the year 1967 as a medical graduate from University of Bombay.

Barack Obama-  US President Barack Obama was named TIME's Person of the Year for 2012, because of his historic win over the re-election in November 2012  which is being considered as symbol of the nation's changing demographics amid the backdrop of high unemployment and other challenges.

NATIONAL

S Gopalakrishnan-  S Gopalakrishnan, the co-founder and Executive Co-Chairman of Infosys, on 5 April 2013 was elected as the President of the industry body Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) for the year 2013-14. He is succeeding Adi Godrej, Chairman of the Godrej Group. 

Narendra Kumar Verma- Narendra Kumar Verma on 4 April 2013 was appointed as the new director of the state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp’s (ONGC) Exploration. 54 year old Narendra Kumar Verma would be replacing S.V. Rao, who term super-annuated on 31 March 2013. As Director-Exploration at OVL, Responsibility of N.K. Verma is to look for development and implementation of exploration strategy and Business Development for past 15 months.

M F Farooqui- M F Farooqui on 1 April 2013 took over charge as the secretary of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT). He replaced R Chandrashekhar who retired in the month of March 2013. Prior to his appointment, Farooqui was the secretary for the Department of Heavy Industries.

Rajan Bharti Mittal- The Vice Chairman and Managing Director of Bharti Enterprises Rajan Bharti Mittal on 31 March 2013 appointed as the President of International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) India.The appointment of Rajan Bharti Mittal came at the conclusion of 82nd Annual General Meeting of ICC India.

Prahlad Joshi- Lok Sabha member Prahlad Joshi on 21 March 2013 appointed state ruling BJP chief by national President Rajnath Singh to lead the 5 May 2013 Assembly polls.The appointment of Joshi, representing Dharwad, was announced by Karnataka BJP just a day prior, after the Election Commission declared the poll schedule.

Babasaheb Neelkanth Kalyani- Babasaheb Neelkanth Kalyani, the Chairman and Managing Director of Bharat Forge Limited was nominated by the Government of India for the post of Chairman of India-Japan Business Leader’s Forum (IJBLF).

Bhaichung Bhutia- Bhaichung Bhutia, the former India captain of the football team was appointed as the chairman of the All India Football Federation’s technical committee. The decision to appoint him as the chairman was taken by President Praful Patel.

B Ashok Reddy- B Ashok Reddy, the Infotech Enterprises President (Human Resources and Corporate Affairs), was elected as the new chairman of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Andhra Pradesh, for 2013-14. C Suresh Rayudu, the Srinivasa Hatcheries Group Managing Director was elected as the vice-chairman of CII, AP. Both of them were elected on 16 March 2013 in Hyderabad.

Ashwani Kumar- 62 year old Former CBI Director, Ashwani Kumar on 9 March 2013 appointed as Governor of Nagaland.Ashwani Kumar was the Director of the agency from August 2008 to November 2010. He will be the first head of the agency to be appointed as a Governor.

MRP Rao- MRP Rao took over as the Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO) in National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) on 5 March 2013. MRP Rao completed Bachelor of Engineering in Mining (Gold Medalist) from Osmania University, Hyderabad. He worked for 4 years as the Production Incharge in Singareni Collieries Co. Ltd (SCCL). He joined Indian Forest Service from the 1986 batch, Uttar Pradesh cadre.

Neiphiu Rio- Neiphiu Rio 63, of Naga People’s Front (NPF) party was sworn in as Chief Minister of Nagaland for the third straight term on 5 March 2013 along with 11 ministers by the Governor Nikhil Kumar at the Raj Bhavan in Kohima. The other eleven ministers who had taken oath for the office were from his own party, the Naga People’s Front (NPF), which had won 38 seats in the 60-member house. 

Mukul Manda Sangma- Mukul Manda Sangma of Congress was sworn-in as the Chief Minister of Meghalaya for the second term on 5 March 2013. He took oath for the second term as 26th Chief Minister of the state. The Governor, R.S. Mooshahary administered him the oath of office and secrecy at the Raj Bhavan premises in Shillong. 47-year old Mukul Sangma led the Congress with 29 seats, merely two seats short of the majority in a house of 60. He was sworn-in without the Council of Ministers. 

Anurag G Thapliyal- Vice Admiral Anurag G Thapliyal on 28 February 2013 took over as the twentieth Director General of the Indian Coast Guard. He is the successor of the outgoing Vice Admiral MP Muralidharan. 

T. S. Vijayan- T. S. Vijayan, the former LIC chief took over as the Chairman of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) on 21 February 2013. Vijayan will succeed J. Hari Narayan. J. Hari Narayan completed the five-year term on 20 February 2013.

Asoke Kumar Mukerji- Asoke Kumar Mukerji was appointed as the next Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations on 13 February 2013. Mukerji replaced Hardeep Singh Puri who retired in February 2013 after the tenure of two years.

Y Bhaskar Rao- Y Bhaskar Rao, the former Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court, sworn in as the Lokayukta on 14 February 2013. The post of Lokayukta was lying vacant since September 2011. Y Bhaskar Rao will succeed Justice (Retd) Shivaraj Patil who resigned as the Lokayukta in September 2011 after allegations about illegal possession of government site.

Mohan Parasaran- Mohan Parasaran, the Additional Solicitor General was on 13 February 2013 appointed as the Solicitor General of India after senior advocate Rohinton Nariman resigned from his designation. Mohan Parasaran will serve as the Solicitor General of India for a term of three years. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) cleared his name for Solicitor General of India. Rohinton Nariman resigned from his post in Early February 2013.

Kalyan Kumar Chakravarty- The President of India, Pranab Mukherjee appointed Kalyan Kumar Chakravarty as the chairman of Lalit Kala Akademi on 12 February 2013. Kalyan Kumar Chakravarty is the IAS officer of 1970 batch and retired from the designation of Secretary to Government of India. 

P.R. Vasudeva Rao- P.R. Vasudeva Rao became the Director of the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR) at Kalpakkam on 31 January 2013. He succeeded S.C Chetal, who has now retired. Dr. Rao was earlier the Director, Chemistry Group in IGCAR and is also a specialist in the field of actinide chemistry as well as a few areas of chemistry of nuclear fuel cycle. In IGCAR, Dr. Rao led various R&D programmes related to the field of chemistry. 

Uddhav Thackeray- Uddhav Thackeray on 23 January 2013 was elected as the Party President for Shiv Sena during the National Executive Meet of the party held at Sena Bhawan, party’s headquarters at Dadar in Central Mumbai. He was elected to the post of the President of the Party on the day of birth anniversary of the party supremo and his father, Bal Thackeray. Now, Uddhav will be responsible to take all the decisions of the party and make the appointments too. 

Rahul Gandhi- Rahul Gandhi on 19 January 2013 was formally elevated and was appointed at the position of party Vice-President of Congress at the Chintan Shivir organised at Jaipur in January 2013. With this appointment, Rahul Gandhi took over the second highest chair of the oldest political party of the nation, just after the party-president and her mother Sonia Gandhi. His appointment to the post came up following the decision made by the Congress Working Committee, the party's highest decision making body. 

Roelant Oltmans- Hockey India on 17 January announced that Roelant Oltmans, the Dutch Coach would serve the Indian Hockey Team as Director - High Performance and would look forward towards the sports in India till 2016 Rio Olympics. Oltmans would be responsible for the planning the training program as well as calendar for both the junior and the senior Players in Men and Women sections.

D.K. Jain- Union Government of India on 7 January 2012 appointed Justice D.K. Jain as Chairman of the 20th Law Commission of India. Justice Jain would take on the chair of the Chairman of the Law Commission on 24 January 2012 after he retires of a Judge of Supreme Court on the same day. The Law Commission is responsible for offering advices on complex issues to the Government. He would be heading the commission as its chief for a period of three-years from the date of being in the office. 

Ravindra Dholkia- The Ministry of Civil Aviation on 3 January 2013 constituted a five-member committee to look into and suggest the measures that can be taken for cost cutting as well as optimal utilization of resources in Air India. The committee would be headed by Prof. Ravindra Dholkia of IIM, Ahmedabad.

Urjit Patel-Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank of India on 3 January 2013. Urjit Patel succeeds Subir Gokarn, who handled Monetary Policy in RBI. The three-year term of Subir Gokarn terminated in November 2012 but he was given an extension which ended finally on 31 December 2012. Urjit Patel was chosen over current Deputy Governor Subir Gokarn and International Monetary Fund (IMF) economist Kalpana Kochhar. 

Syed Asif Ibrahim-Syed Asif Ibrahim, the 1977 Madhya Pradesh cadre IPS officer took over the office of Intelligence Bureau as a director on 1 January 2013 from Nehchal Sandhu. Alok Joshi, the Haryana cadre IPS officer on the other hand took over the office of RAW as the director on 31 December 2012. 

S. Ramakrishnan- A senior Scientist from ISRO, S. Ramakrishnan took over as the Director of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC), Thiruvananthapuram in the first week of January 2013. Ramakrishnan carries a four decades of experience in rocketry and headed the Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC) at ISRO. He replaced P S Veeraraghavan. 

S. Raman- Indian Market Regulator SEBI on 28 December 2012 appointed S. Raman as Whole-time Member of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). Prior to this appointment, Raman, had served as Chairman and Managing Director of Canara Bank from September 2010 to September 2012 and had also served as Executive Director of Union Bank of India from October 2008 to August 2010.

MS Sahoo -MS Sahoo, the former member of SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) on 27 December 2012 had been appointed secretary of the Institute of Company Secretaries. The appointment of MS Sahoo is going to be effective from 1 January2013.

Narendra Modi- Narendra Modi on 26 December 2012 was sworn-in as the Chief Minister of Gujarat for the fourth consecutive term. Governor Kamla Beniwal administered the oath of office and secrecy to him at Sardar Patel Stadium at Ahmedabad. Seven cabinet Ministers and nine Ministers of State also took oath. 

Virbhadra Singh- Former Union Minister of India and Veteran Congress leader Virbhadra Singh on 25 December 2012 was sworn-in as Chief Minister of Himachal for a record sixth term in Shimla. 78 years old Virbhadra Singh was administered the oath of office by Governor of Himachal Pradesh Urmila Singh. Oath of office and secrecy to the chief parliamentary secretaries was administered by the Chief Minister.

Swatanter Kumar- Justice Swatanter Kumar in the fourth week of December 2012 took over as the Chairperson of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) - the apex body constituted under The National Green Tribunal Act 2010. He would look forward to the issues related to the cases of environmental protection and conversation of forests and the natural resources. Justice Kumar is the first Judge of Supreme Court of India to preside over the Tribunal that never had a full-time Chairperson for itself. 

Praful Patel-Praful Patel on 20 December 2012 was re-elected as the President of All India Football Federation (AIFF) during the annual general body meet that was held at Football House at New Delhi. This would be the second term for him as the President of All India Football Federation.

Subhash Joshi- Subhash Joshi on 18 December 2012 appointed as the new chief of Border Security Force (BSF) while special secretary in home ministry Ajay Chadha appointed to head the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP). Subhash Joshi is at present is the director general of National Security Guard and he is going to lead the 1.8 lakh strong border force BSF. The post of the chief of Indian Border Force had fallen vacant on 1 December 2012 due to retirement U K Bansal’s, the director general of the Border Security Force ( BSF). 

Rajesh Singh- General Motors India on 17 December 2012 appointed Rajesh Singh as the new Vice President-Sales, Marketing and Aftersales. He will take the office from 1 January 2013 and will be responsible for the complete vehicle sales, servicing and marketing (VSSM) function of GM India.

Parthasarathi Shome- The Union government of India appointed Parthasarathi Shome, the tax expert, as the adviser to finance minister P Chidambaram. Shome was appointed with a rank of minister of state and this also indicated his comeback to the Secretariat building after almost 5 years. 

Ranjit Sinha- Ranjit Sinha, IPS officer of 1974-batch Bihar cadre on 3 December 2012 acquired the office as new CBI director. Ranjit Sinha, 59, who was holding the designation of director general Indo-Tibetan Border Police, succeeded A.P. Singh who retired from the CBI office on 30 November 2012. Sinha will have two-year duration as the CBI director. He had served in CBI agency initially as the DIG and joint director as well.

Chitra Ramkrishna- Chitra Ramkrishna on 26 November 2012 was appointed as the Managing Director and CEO of the National Stock Exchange (NSE). Her appointment to the position would come to effect from 1 April 2013, for a period of five years from the date of joining. Chitra Ramkrishna would be replacing the Managing Director and CEO of NSE Ravi Narain. 

Scott Flemming- Scott Flemming was appointed as the head coach of the men’s National Basketball Team in the third week of November 2012 by the Basketball Federation of India (BFI).

Anil Dev Singh-Anil Dev Singh, the former Chief Justice of Rajasthan High Court on 19 November 2012 was appointed as the new Chairperson of the Election Commission of The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) after S.Y. Quraishi resigned from his post on 17 November 2012. This appointment was done by Vijay Kumar Malhotra, the Acting President of IOA at present.