Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Finance director D K Sarraf has been adjudged the Best chief financial officer of a public sector unit in the 2009-10 financial year.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee gave the Business Today Best CFO in the Public Sector Award to Sarraf, ONGC said.

Sarraf, 53, has been director (finance) of ONGC since December, 2007, and recently, he was chosen by

government headhunter Public Enterprises Selection Board to head ONGC Videsh Ltd, the overseas arm of the state explorer.

"CFOs who best succeeded in finding the balance between company growth and meeting shareholder expectations while keeping input costs down during the difficult financial year of 2009-10" were awarded at the function, it said.

Financial year 2009-10 was a tough one for CFOs, with companies slowly recovering from the downturn amid fears of a relapse.

Image: D K Sarraf