KOCHI: Amid uncertainty over the appointment of the next managing director of Kochi Metro Rail Ltd (KMRL), retired IPS officer K Padmakumar has emerged as a frontrunner for the post in the ruling UDF dispensation, according to sources. M Beena, an IAS officer currently on central deputation and expected to return to the state by October, is also among the contenders for the post, sources said.
Other names that have reportedly been considered include IPS officer Nitin Agarwal and Jiji Thomson, IAS (retired). However, when contacted by TNIE, Padmakumar said he had no knowledge of any decision to appoint him as KMRL MD.
Padmakumar has emerged frontrunner for the post despite the Kochi Metro Officers’ Association (KMOA) urging the state government to appoint a serving IAS officer with experience in infrastructure projects as KMRL’s next MD.
In a letter to Chief Minister V D Satheesan, the KMOA had urged the government against appointing a retired IAS or IPS officer to the post. The association sought the appointment of a serving IAS officer, arguing that an officer currently in service would be better placed to discharge KMRL’s responsibilities.
G Priyanka, Ernakulam district collector, who has been holding temporary charge of KMRL MD since the tenure of Loknath Behera ended on August 30, had told a city-based group Kochi First that a permanent appointment would be made within two weeks.
KMRL is at a critical stage, with several metro and urban mobility projects under execution and planning.