New Delhi: Twenty two candidates, including six IAS officers, are in the fray for the top job in Coal India (CIL), the world's largest producer of dry fuel. "There are six IAS officers who are in the race for the post of regular CIL Chairman. There are six officials from Coal India too who have applied for the post, out of a total 22 candidates," a top official in the Coal Ministry said. The six IAS officers are Sudhir Kumar of Bihar cadre, Shishir Priyadarshi of UP cadre, Narsing Rao of Andhra Pradesh cadre, Rajpal Singh Kahlon of West Bengal cadre, Srimat Pandey of Rajasthan cadre and Nandita Chatterjee of West Bengal Cadre, the official said. The officials from CIL include Mohan Das, Director (Personnel & Industrial Relations), D C Garg, CMD of Western Coalfields, T K Lahiri, CMD of Bharat Coking Coal, he added. Mukund Prasad, Director (Corporate Strategy), Welspun Group, is the only candidate from the private sector in the fray, the official said. In December, the Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB), which handles hiring for the public sector firms, came out with an advertisement, inviting applications from suitable candidates for the post of CIL chairman. Zohra Chatterji, Additional Secretary in the Coal Ministry, had assumed the additional charge of the CMD of CIL on February 1. Chatterji took over from N C Jha, who retired on January 31.