Given the fact that the debate over CEO compensation has just begun, it would be difficult to say how bad is the situation in India! Yet, it would be imperative to put in place a system of checks and balances to prevent US-style fiascos.

Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh's remarks on soaring CEO salary graphs at a recent CII conference might not have shaken the CEO fraternity, but it definitely has stirred a hornet's nest. While some have even dubbed it as `moralizing trivia', as reported in the popular media, a handful of expert reviews have come pouring in pink dailies trying to argue and justify the Sensex-like gains in top executives' compensations at India Inc. Brilliant analysts suggests that eye-popping executive compensations are justified on the ground that they are performance-based. In other words, the CEO or a top executive has been awarded big bonuses and raises only after they have helped their company achieve improved profits, gain market share and enhance shareholder wealth.

While some reports have rightly justified the compensations awarded to top honchos at some of India's leading companies, there are examples where the companies have heaped rewards on executives even though their performance has been poor. But that is not the big picture. The big picture is that in a country where 60% of the population struggles to make both the ends meet and where a gap between haves and have-nots has only been growing, the kind of astronomical salaries that have been thrown to even some new pros in recent times is bound to raise hackles and widen the gap even further.

Global CEO Magazine, CEO Compensation, Manmohan Singh, Indian Corporations, BusinessWeek, BW, Compensation Committees, Securities & Exchange Commission, SEC, Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, Corporates Struggle, Philanthropist CEOs, Eric Schmidt, Terry Semel.