Battleground UTI: 10 Things You May Like to Know About IAS officer Jitesh Khosla

FOR the last few months, Jitesh Khosla, a 1979 batch Assam cadre IAS officer, has hogged the limelight as he is one of the main contenders for the post of chairman of the UTI Mutual Fund which was earlier headed by IAS officers such as M Damodaran and UK Sinha. The UTI Mutual Fund, which manages assets over Rs 62,000 crore (as on September 30), has been headless since UK Sinha left the organization to become the Sebi chief in February, 2011.

According to reports, Khosla who incidentally is brother of Omita Paul, adviser to finance minister Pranab Mukherjee, is the front-runner for the post.

Here are 10 things you may like to know about Jitesh Khosla:

1. Khosla is 56 year old (Born in May 1955)

2. He originally hails from Punjab, but has been serving in Assam.

3. Knows Punjabi, Assamese, English and French

4. A mechanical engineer from IIT-Delhi before getting into IAS in 1979, Khosla is also a post graduate in System Analysis Finance from IIT-Delhi and a PG in social planning and policy from London School of Economics. He completed a certificate course in French.

5. Served in DoPT on deputation as under secretary and deputy secretary between 1986 and 1990.

6. He was a director and joint secretary in department of economic affairs between 1994 and 1999.

7. He was joint secretary and then OSD (at the rank of addition secretary) in corporate affairs ministry between January 2004 and January 2011.

8. Was chairman, Assam State Electricity Board, and additional chief secretary of government of Assam.

9. Khosla was one of the six officers of corporate affairs ministry to jointly receive the Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration, 2007-08 for MCA21, an e-Governance project that detects corporate fraud.

10. Many of Khosla’s moves come under media attention and even scrutiny as he is brother of Omita Paul, all-powerful adviser to finance minister Pranab Mukherjee.