Over 250 listed cos will have to split CMD post to meet SEBI norms

Reliance Industries, Infosys, TCS and Bharti Airtel are among the 291 listed companies that will have to appoint a non-executive chairperson on their boards by April 1, 2020 to comply with regulator Sebi's directive and most of these firms will need to split the roles of chairman and managing director for compliance. Currently, many companies have merged the two posts as CMD (chairman-cum-managing director), leading to some overlapping of the board and management, which could lead to conflict of interest. Under the new Sebi norms, the top 500 listed entities will have to ensure that the chairperson is a non-executive director from April 1, 2020. It will eventually lead to a split in the post of chairman and managing director. These norms are part of the series of recommendations given by the Sebi-appointed Kotak committee on corporate governance.