Vinod Rai, a 1972 batch IAS officer of Kerala cadre, took oath on Monday as the country's new Comptroller and Auditor General of India. Rai, who replaced V N Kaul, was administered the oath of office by President Pratibha Patil at a brief function at Rashtrapati Bhawan. Vice President Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister P Chidambaram were among the dignitaries present at the ceremony.
His appointment will be effective from the date he assumes charge of his office, an official statement said on Monday. An Indian Administrative Service officer of Kerala cadre, 1972 batch, Rai will take over from V N Kaul.
Implementation of Lodha Committee recommendations in the Board of Control for Cricket in India will be complete in the next four-five months, said Vinod Rai, head of the Supreme Court-appointed panel of administrators to manage the cricket board's affairs.
Having cut off the "umbilical cord" that tied him to the Board, the former Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) spoke to PTI on a range of issues from "giving a free hand" to the Virat Kohli-Ravi Shastri duo, Anil Kumble's exit as national coach, his frosty relationship with colleague Diana Edulji, sexual harassment allegations against BCCI CEO Rahul Johri and difficulties in implementing the Supreme Court-mandated Lodha recommendations.
Unfazed by the delaying tactics adopted by the members of the Board of Control for Cricket in India at its last SGM, the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators has strengthened its resolve to implement the mandate given to them by the apex court.
As industrialist Vijay Mallya fights his wilful defaulter tag, former CAG Vinod Rai has said Kingfisher Airlines' loan default is just a "trickle" and the overall problem of huge bad loans at public sector banks can be blamed on 'cronies' using connections to borrow money.
Vinod Rai, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India till May and probably the most talked-about government official in the last few years, participated in a Live Chat with readers of Rediff.com on Friday.
The Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators chief Vinod Rai on Tuesday made it clear that the Board of Control for Cricket in India's office-bearers are not mandated to take any decision on India's Champions Trophy participation without the COA's approval.
Apex auditor CAG on Friday lamented that private telecom operators are not providing their account books to it, despite a request from the government.
The Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrator chief Vinod Rai was non-committal on being asked whether the COA will ask Team India to participate or allow them to boycott the ICC Champions Trophy, starting in the United Kingdom, on June 1.
India will finish their home series against Sri Lanka on December 24 before leaving for South Africa on December 28. They are scheduled to play a two-day warm-up tie starting on December 30 before taking on South Africa in the first Test on January 5.
In a significant statement, the head of Board of Control for Cricket in India's Committee of Administrators (COA) Vinod Rai on Thursday made it clear that the BCCI officials don't need their approval to convene a Special General Meeting (SGM).
Comptroller and Auditor General Vinod Rai on Monday appeared before the Joint Parliamentary Committee, which is probing the 2G spectrum scam, to explain how the government auditor quantified the losses in the spectrum allocation at Rs 1.76 lakh crore. Rai was asked to brief the Committee, chaired by Congress leader P C Chacko, on the allocation and pricing of telecom licences and spectrum during 1998 to 2009.
COA also set to refer Rahul-Pandya matter to Ombudsman
The Kapil Dev-led panel has got the green light from the BCCI's legal team to appoint the next coach of the men's side by mid-August.
The Committee of Administrators (COA) wants BCCI to appoint an Ombudsman and an Ethics Officer at the earliest to deal with any disputes leading up to its much-awaited Annual General Meeting and elections.
'There should be total transparency in the system.'
Defending the proactive approach of the CAG, Rai emphasised that the job of the public auditor was also to ensure that executive and the government are held financially accountable to legislature.
The Committee of Administrators (COA) held a fruitful first meeting with coach Anil Kumble and rest of the Indian cricket team's support staff on the sidelines of the Board of Control for Cricket in India's Awards in Bengaluru.
The Samajwadi Party and Congress have announced that they will contest together under the INDIA bloc.
Chaudhary openly questioned the decisions taken by CoA with regards to various appointments.
What the INDIA alliance needs is neither a counter to Modi's tall personality and undiminished charisma nor a counter-narrative to his Hindutva agenda, now centred on the Ayodhya temple consecration on January 22, argues N Sathiya Moorthy.
A vacation bench of Justices M M Shantanagoudar and Deepak Gupta was informed by Guha's counsel that he had tendered his resignation on May 28 to Vinod Rai, Chairman of the Committee of Administrators of the Board of Control for Cricket in India.
He replaced Vinod Rai, who superannuated on Wednesday after five-and-a-half years of eventful tenure as the head of CAG.
The two-member COA comprising Vinod Rai and Diana Edulji have recommended election for fresh set of office-bearers by removing acting president CK Khanna, acting secretary Amitabh Chaudhary and treasurer Aniruddh Chaudhry.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India, at its Special General Meeting on Tuesday, decided to double the incentive of the Indian cricket team from Rs 50 lakh to Rs 1 crore for their recent 2-1 Test series win against Australia last month.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India's Committee of Administrators (COA) on Wednesday made it clear that they will not sacrifice India's interests while dealing with the International Cricket Council.
The turf war in the Board of Control for Cricket in India got uglier as Committee of Administrators, headed by Vinod Rai, on Saturday cleared new Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) chief Ajit Singh's appointment despite acting secretary Amitabh Chaudhary refusing to sign the contract letter.
Vinod Rai, former Comptroller and Auditor General of India, former India women's captain Diana Edulji and banker Vikram Limaye were present at the meeting held at the IDFC Bank's premises in suburban Bandra-Kurla Complex.
Most politicians and even non-politicians have been honoured because of what they were purported to be electorally worth for the ruling party of their time, argues N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India announced on Tuesday that the 12th edition of the Indian Premier League to be played later this year will be held in India.
Apart from Kapil Dev, the panel comprises former women's captain Shantha Rangaswamy and former men's coach Anshuman Gaekwad.
The Indian cricketers' central contracts saw a two-fold rise with top players in group A earning Rs 2 crore annually. Earlier, they were drawing Rs 1 crore.
A historian, a retired auditor and a financial executive were among four people named by India's highest court on Monday to run the country's cricket board (BCCI).
Political funding of elections has led to the rise in black money in the economy.
After ex-Comptroller and Auditor General Vinod Rai attacked Manmohan Singh on 2G issue, Congress leader Kamal Nath on Friday said the former Prime Minister may have made a "mistake" in not acting despite his letter to him expressing concern over the spectrum allocation process.
President Pranab Mukherjee presented five Padma Vibhushan, eight Padma Bhushan and forty-three Padma Shri awards at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.
The Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (COA) on Monday sacked some of the previous officials of the Board of Control for Cricket in India, including Team India's media manager Nishant Arora.
'At least 7 to 8 players, who are all Test team specialists will have to be in England in June'
BCCI acting secretary shoots off letter, questions CoA's chief functioning