New Delhi (04.05.2026): Former SAIL Chairperson Soma Mondal is set to demit office today upon the completion of her three-year term as a Member of the Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB). While a proposal for her tenure extension had been under consideration, the Union government has reportedly turned it down, signalling a move toward fresh leadership in the country’s premier headhunting body for PSUs. A major section of officials across services and CPSEs believes that she deserved an extension in tenure.
Insiders reveal that the central establishment has already identified her successor, making a formal announcement imminent. Mondal, a trailblazer who was the first woman to lead the steel giant SAIL, had transitioned to the PESB in early 2023, a move that was seen then as a significant endorsement of her administrative acumen.
A Tenure Defined by Timing:
Mondal’s entry into the PESB was marked by high-profile optics. She was selected for the prized post in February 2023, eleven weeks before her superannuation (30.04.2023) as SAIL Chairperson. She had stepped into the vacancy created by the resignation of Rear Admiral Shekhar Mital (Retd), the former CMD of Goa Shipyard Ltd. However, her exit from the PESB comes at a time when her legacy at SAIL has come under renewed scrutiny.
The Shadow of 'Contentious Issues':
While administrative transitions are often routine, a section of the bureaucracy suggests that the denial of an extension was not merely a matter of procedure. Sources indicate that "old contentious issues" dating back to her leadership at SAIL may have played a role in the establishment’s decision. In recent months, SAIL has been in the eye of a storm involving a series of internal disputes and administrative friction. These issues recently culminated in the abrupt and "unpleasant" resignation of the current SAIL Chairman, Amrendu Prakash.
With Mondal’s farewell scheduled for today, the focus now shifts to the ACC’s next pick for the PESB, a role that will be crucial in stabilizing the leadership pipeline for several Navratna and Maharatna companies currently facing vacancies.
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