As the term of the reserve bank of India’s governor Duvvuri Subbarao nears its completion in September, speculations on his likely successors have begun. The name of the next governor is likely to be announced by the first or second week of August. We take a look at some of the names that are finding mention in the grapevine.

1) Urjit Patel: In January this year, Urjit Patel, a reputed economist and public finance expert, took over as one of the four deputy governors at the reserve bank of India. Before joining the RBI, he was advisor (energy & infrastructure) with The Boston Consulting Group. Patel brings with him experiences of working with both the government and the corporate houses. Having completed his M.Phil from Oxford and Ph.D in Economics from Yale, he served at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) from 1990-1995, He was then sent to the RBI on a deputation basis for a year where he played an advisory role focusing on the development of the debt and the foreign exchange market, introducing reforms in the pension and banking sector, etc., to name a few. A year later, he was appointed a consultant to the department of economic affairs under the finance ministry where he served between 1998 and 2001. He has also served various corporate houses including, president (business development), Reliance Industries Limited and executive director and member of the management committee of Infrastructure Development Finance Company Limited (IDFC).

2) Saumitra Chaudhuri: A member of the planning commission since 2009, Saumitra Chaudhuri has been and continues to be an integral part of various government-appointed committees related to finance and economics. In January 2005, Chaudhuri was appointed as a member of the prime minister's economic advisory council and he continues to serve there. He began his career in 1981 in the bureau of industrial costs & prices, ministry of industry and two years later he joined the department of steel as a senior economist. Between 1986 and 1991, Chaudhuri was associated with Steel Authority of India Ltd and State Bank of India before moving on to work with credit rating agency ICRA for the next sixteen years and subsequently joining the PMEAC.

3) Arvind Mayaram: Arvind Mayaram, a 1978 batch IAS officer of Rajasthan cadre, was appointed as the secretary, department of economic affairs in the ministry of finance in August 2012. This is his third stint in the department where he earlier served as the deputy secretary (1987-1991) and joint secretary (2005-2008). Prior to joining this department as secretary, he was working as a special secretary and financial adviser in the rural development department.

4) Raghuram Rajan: The name of India's chief economic advisor Raghuram Rajan has emerged as one of the strongest contenders in the fray for the post of the next RBI governor. Rajan is known to possess in-depth knowledge in the field of finance and economics and is also seen as someone who could bring in bold and innovative reforms, an urgent need when the country's economy is languishing. From 2003-2006, Rajan served as the economic counselor and director of research at the International Monetary Fund after having taught at the graduate school of business at the University of Chicago.
Both Mayaram and Rajan have been working closely with the finance ministry and have been making attempts to provide the requisite boost to the economy.

5) U K Sinha: U K Sinha took over as the chairman of the market watchdog securities and exchange board of India (Sebi) in 2011 after having served as the chairman and managing director at UTI asset management company for six years. A 1976 batch IAS officer of Bihar cadre, Sinha served as joint secretary in charge of the capital markets and the banking division in the finance ministry. Sinha, known for his vast knowledge of the capital markets, is touted as the man responsible for introducing several reforms to provide the Indian capital markets the necessary boost. In the recent times, Sebi has been credited for going down heavily on defaulting companies and penalising them accordingly. In addition, the regulator has also come up with various policies to promote investment and is now working on reviewing its insider trading norms.

6) Sumit Bose: A 1976 batch IAS officer of Madhya Pradesh cadre is presently serving as the secretary in the revenue department under the finance ministry after having served as secretary in the department of expenditure. Bose completed his masters in social policy planning from the London School of Economics and Political Science. He has also served in the education, finance and economic affairs departments at various levels besides providing consultancy services to the United Nations Development Programme.