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Ashok Kumar Gupta

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Ashok Kumar Gupta
Chair of the Competition Commission of India
Assumed office
12 November 2018
Preceded byDevender Kumar Sikri
Personal details
Born26 October 1957
NationalityIndian
SpouseDr. Priti Gupta
EducationDelhi University (Mechanical Engineering)
Syracuse University (M.P.A.)
University of Madras (M.Phil)
ProfessionCivil Servant

Ashok Kumar Gupta (Hindi: अशोक कुमार गुप्ता) has served for over 40 years in public service, across sectors from industry and finance, to health and defence production. He has held key positions in the Central Government of India, such as the Chairperson of the Competition Commission of India, Secretary to the Government of India in the Department of Defence Production, as well as several positions in the Ministries of Health, Heavy Industries, Shipping, MSME, and Commerce & Industry.

His positions within the Tamil Nadu Government include CMD, Tamil Nadu Cements, Special Secretary (Finance), and Distt. Magistrate, Villupuram.

At the Centre, Gupta has contributed to the formulation of government policies, including Automobile Policy, Prime Minister’s Rojgar Yojana, and ‘Make’ Procedure in defence procurement, as well as establishing Vardhman Mahavir Medical College, Delhi. He has served on the Boards of Central and State PSUs such as Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd., Heavy Engineering Corporation, and Tamil Nadu Cements.[1]

Education

Gupta has a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Delhi University. Subsequently, he received a Master of Public Administration (M.P.A.) from Syracuse University (SU). Gupta’s Master’s project at SU, “Regulatory Framework for Health Care Organisations in India”, contributed to the Central Government’s decision of enacting the Clinical Establishments (Registration and Regulation) Act, 2010.[2]

Gupta went on to receive his M.Phil. in Defence and Strategic Studies from the University of Madras.[1]

Career

As an IAS Officer

Gupta joined the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) in 1981 and has since served in various posts in both the Union and Tamil Nadu Governments as well as in Central and State Public Sector Units. These include the following:[1]

  • Secretary, Department of Defence Production, Government of India;
  • Additional/Special Secretary, Department of Defence Production, Government of India;
  • Joint Secretary, Department of Defence, Government of India;
  • Joint Secretary. & Sr. Directing Staff, National Defence College;
  • Joint Secretary, Department of Health, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India;
  • Director, Department of Heavy Industry, Government of India;
  • Director, Department of Small Scale Industries, Ministry of Industry, Government of India;
  • Special Secretary, Finance, Government of Tamil Nadu;
  • Additional Secretary/Special Secretary, Prohibition & Excise, Government of Tamil Nadu;
  • Chairman & Managing Director, Tamil Nadu Cements;
  • Managing Director, Tamil Nadu Steels; and
  • Deputy Chairman, Chennai Port Trust.

Secretary, Defence Production

Gupta was appointed Secretary to the Government of India, Department of Defence Production, on 15 May 2015.[3] Within this role, he was responsible for liberalising the licensing regime and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy, undertaking measures such as prioritising procurement from Indian vendors, and enabling access to state-of-the-art technology by raising the cap on FDI in the defence sector.

Chairman and Managing Director, Tamil Nadu Cements

Gupta was the Chairman and Managing Director, Tamil Nadu Cements, from June 2005 to April 2007 and led a net profit in 2006–07.

Joint Secretary, Department of Health

As Joint Secretary, Department of Health, Gupta handled key projects relating to International Cooperation, World Bank, and WHO. He was also instrumental in setting up the Vardhman Mahavir Medical College, Delhi.

Competition Commission of India (CCI)

Gupta was appointed chair of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) on 12 November 2018.[4] Gupta has focused on reinforcing the Commission’s enforcement and advocacy actions in digital markets[5] through stakeholder engagement and market studies.[6] These include a market study on e-commerce, which proposed self-regulatory measures for e-commerce marketplaces to aid transparency and competition,[7][8][9] and a telecom sector market study (2020), which highlighted data privacy as a factor of non-price competition.[10]

Other areas of focus at CCI under Gupta’s leadership included responding to the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.[11]

Further, during this period, CCI introduced an automatic system of approval for combinations under ‘Green Channel’ on 15 August 2019 to expedite M&A filings approval.[12]

A new confidentiality regime was also put in place for privileged information relating to companies and their business operations.[13] Additional initiatives included the establishment of regional offices in Chennai, Kolkata, and Mumbai.[14]

Chairperson, National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA)

Gupta held the additional charge of Chairperson, National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA) from 1 October 2021[15] to 31 March 2022.[16]

Hony. Chairman, Forum of Indian Regulators (FOIR)

Gupta is the current Hony. Chairman of the Forum of Indian Regulators (FOIR).[17]

References

  1. ^ a b c "The Commission". Competition Commission of India. Archived from the original on 2016-05-11.
  2. ^ Gupta, Ashok (1984-01-01). "A Study Of R&D/Marketing Interface And Innovation Success In High Technology Firms". Business Administration - Dissertations.
  3. ^ "Ashok Kumar Gupta Takes Over as The New Secretary (Defence Production)". Business Standard India. 2015-05-25.
  4. ^ "Ashok Kumar Gupta appointed as the chairman of Competition Commission of India". The Economic Times. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  5. ^ "Ashok Kumar Gupta: 'Concentration of power by itself not a concern … CCI can see if dominance abused or not'". The Indian Express. 2021-01-15. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  6. ^ Gupta, Ashok Kumar (2021-04-13). "The Year Gone By… Competition Law in the Time of a Pandemic – Some Reflections". Competition Policy International. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  7. ^ PTI. "Competition Commission to have regional presence; more streamlined processes: CCI chief". @businessline. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  8. ^ Amaro, Silvia (2021-09-24). "China and the U.S. are challenging Europe's role as top tech regulator". CNBC. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  9. ^ "CCI Chairman Ashok Kumar Gupta: Digital markets lately have become 'centres for unchecked dominance'". The Indian Express. 2021-08-11. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  10. ^ "Competition Commission Chief Hints At Changes In Legislation". NDTV.com. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  11. ^ "Regulating competition in times of Covid-19". Financialexpress.
  12. ^ "View: How the Competition Commission of India can play a crucial role in India's post-Covid economic recovery". The Economic Times.
  13. ^ "Confidentiality regime to be introduced within a month: CCI Chairman". Business Today. 2022-01-19.
  14. ^ ANI. "Sitharaman inaugurates Competition Commission of India's regional office in Chennai". BW Businessworld.
  15. ^ "Office Order" (PDF). 31 December 2021.
  16. ^ "CCI Chairman Gupta to be NFRA chief for three months: MCA". www.thehindubusinessline.com. 2021-09-30. Retrieved 2022-10-06.
  17. ^ "Forum of Indian Regulators - Profile". foir-india.org.
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