Mumbai, June 29: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) will focus on the quality or “content” of independent directors who comprise one-third of the boards of listed companies under Clause 49. Sebi chairman M. Damodaran said the market regulator would take necessary steps to fill certain gaps in this corporate governance strategy that was implemented on January 1.

Damodaran was speaking at a function organised by Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) to unveil a directors’ database on its website. The database will provide details of directors of around 2,352 companies listed on the exchange. At present, close to 4,752 companies are listed on the BSE. The exchange also announced the implementation of ICERS, an application that would enable companies to submit their filings to the exchange over the Internet.

Responding to certain observations made by Prithvi Haldea, managing director of Prime, Damodaran said while the market regulator had succeeded in fixing the “arithmetic”, it will now get to the “content” of independent directors.

Haldea cited an instance where independent directors in a company were related to each other. “You will find that many gaps will be addressed as we go along,” Damodaran said while reiterating that independent directors must be fiercely independent.