New Delhi, March 8 -- New Delhi: The process of appointing new honchos for five large state-owned enterprises with combined revenue of more than Rs.18 trillion found its first appointee on Thursday.

Vikas Kaushal, a partner and chairman at consultancy major Kearney's India operations, was appointed chairman and managing director (CMD) of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL), India's third-biggest oil marketing company by revenue, by the appointments committee of the Union cabinet for a period of five years.

The move marks the first instance of a private sector executive being appointed head of an oil and gas PSU. To be sure, Kaushal has previously worked in HPCL along with other PSUs such as Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleu...