NEW DELHI, Oct 28: Competition watchdog CCI’s investigation arm, Director General office, is facing a talent crunch as it probes increasing number of cases of alleged anti-competitive practices across sectors.
The Director General (DG) office is responsible for investigations into cases referred by the Competition Commission of India (CCI).
A significant chunk of about 40 approved positions at the DG office remain vacant. The unit had an employee strength of about 25 till early October, a source in the know said.
According to the source, more people are expected to join the office in the coming months.
The DG office is currently investigating about 30 cases spread across diverse sectors such as real estate, information technology, pharmaceuticals and petrochemicals.
In July this year, the Commission on behalf of the Corporate Affairs Ministry had invited applications to fill up various posts including that of Additional Director General, and Deputy Director Generals at the DG office.
As per the office memorandum issued by the Commission on July 23, these appointments would be on deputation basis initially for a period of three years and can be extended up to five years.
Generally, the DG office takes about 3-9 months to complete investigations into a case, the source said.
The DG office has the mandate to probe contravention of any provisions of the Competition Act.
The Commission, which keeps tab on anti-competitive practices in the market, refers cases to the DG for detailed investigation. Before making a final decision, the anti-trust regulator takes into consideration the probe report as well as the views of the concerned parties. (PTI)
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