By IANS
Bangalore : The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the country’s apex medical body, has been without a head since Nov 11.
Nirmal Kumar Ganguly, who was the director general of ICMR for over five years, retired Nov 10.
“In the past, a new director general would be named before the retirement of the incumbent officer for a smooth change-over,” an ICMR scientist told IANS. The selection to the top post is done by a screening committee and approved by the health ministry.
ICMR scientists say the delay in appointing a successor to Ganguly may be due to the fact that the post of director general has recently been elevated to the rank of a secretary, a position usually given to persons from the Indian Administrative Service (IAS).
“We do not know who will be our next boss – a scientist or a person from IAS,” a senior ICMR scientist said on condition of anonymity.
ICMR is the apex body in India for the formulation, coordination and promotion of biomedical research and is one of the oldest medical research organisations in the world.