BANGALORE: T Suvarna Raju (in picture) has been named as the next Chairman of Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL). Currently the company’s Director (Design and Development), Raju was named by the Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB), which conducted interviews in New Delhi on Monday. Raju will succeed R K Tyagi, who will superannuate by the end of January 2015.
Raju will be the 17th chairman of HAL, subject to a series of departmental clearances in Delhi. PESB sources told Express that the Department of Personnel and Training will take charge now with the Cabinet Secretariat, Home Ministry and finally the Prime Minister’s Office expected to give the go-ahead. “After we decide on a name, it normally takes four months to complete all formalities. We don’t see any delay this time,” a PESB official said.
Raju joined HAL in 1980 as a Management Trainee after completing his Mechanical Engineering from Andhra University. He holds an MPhil in Defence Strategic Studies from Madras University and also PG Diploma in Intellectual Property Rights from NLSUI.
Raju, hailing from Tanuku in East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh, will have a tenure of over three-and-a-half-years as HAL Chairman, from February 2015 to August 2018. Currently, Raju has under his command four major divisions of HAL, including the Aircraft Research and Development Centre (ARDC), the Mission and Combat System R&D Centre (MSRDC) and the Engine Test Bed R&D Centre (ETBRDC). He also holds the additional charge as Managing Director of the company’s Helicopter Complex.
Raju has been picked by the PESB after interviewing four other candidates -- S Subrahmanyam, MD (MiG Compelx, HAL), V M Chamola, Director (HR, HAL), Umesh Chandra, Executive Director (BEML) and Air Marshal R K Dhir (IAF).
Raju told Express on his arrival from Delhi past mid-night that his focus will be to turn HAL into an aerospace technology leader.“We need to quickly sink in with the changing times. Technology advancement is the key.”