Devender Kumar Sikri appointed as Chairman of CCI

Union Government has appointed former IAS Devender Kumar Sikri as Chairman of Competition Commission of India (CCI).
He will succeed Ashok Chawla whose tenure ended as the Chairman of CCI. He will have tenure of two and half years i.e. till he attains the age of 65 years.

About Devender Kumar Sikri

• Devender Kumar Sikri is a former IAS officer of Gujarat cadre. He has held various positions in his cadre state Gujarat as well as in Centre.
• He was superannuated as Secretary, Department of Justice in July 2013.
• He had also served as Secretary in the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development, and Registrar General of Census (RGC).

About Competition Commission of India

• The CCI was established to eliminate practices that adversely affect competition in different industries and protect interests of consumers and ensure freedom of trade.
• It is statutory body established under The Competition Act of 2002. It was established in 2003 and became fully functional in 2009.
• Its predecessor was the MRTPC (Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission) which was functional prior to 1991 Economic Reforms.
• The CCI acts as a quasi-judicial body which gives opinions to statutory authorities and also deals with other cases.

Month: Current Affairs - January, 2016