Why don’t you have female directors, NSE asks 260 companies

Mumbai, July 22

The National Stock Exchange has issued notice to 260 companies, including 145 suspended firms, for their failure to comply with Sebi’s norms of appointing at least one female director on their boards.

In February 2014, Sebi had directed companies to appoint at least one female director on their boards by October 1, 2014, a deadline that was later extended to April 1, 2015.

"In compliance with the Sebi directive, NSE has issued notices to 260 companies (this includes suspended companies) which have not complied so far," NSE said in a statement ion Wednesday.

An NSE spokesperson said only one of the 260 companies has complied with the requirement after the stock exchange issued notices.

The NSE has a total of 1, 750 listed companies (including debt and MF). Of this number, 189 have been suspended for not complying with the stock exchange’s mandated requirements.

Sebi in April had announced a minimum fine of Rs 50,000 fine for those companies that failed to appoint a female director on them and gave them six months’ time to comply.

In April, Sebi announced a four-stage penalty structure in which fines would increase with the passage of time.

The listed companies complying between April 1 and June 30, 2015, will have to pay only Rs 50,000.  Those complying between July 1 and September 30 will have to pay Rs 50,000 and an additional Rs 1,000 per day till compliance.

Thos companies complying after the September 30, 2015, will have to pay Rs 1.42 lakh and Rs 5,000 for each day of non-compliance. Sebi may also take penal action against non-compliant entities, their promoters and/or directors.

As per NSE analysis, about 88 per cent of the companies listed on the exchange have so far complied with the requirement. — PTI