Mumbai, March 20 (IANS): India's securities markets regulator said on Friday that it would penalise listed companies that do not have even one woman on their board

It is very shameful the listed companies numbering around 8,000 are not able to find one competent woman to be on their board, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) chairman U.K.Sinha told reporters on the sidelines of an event here.

The SEBI has extended the deadline, to April 1, 2015, for companies to comply with its stipulation.

According to Sinha, the regulator would take a serious view on the companies that do not abide by the stipulation citing the penalities levied by SEBI on listed companies that did not comply with the regulation of bringing down the promoter holding to 25 percent.

However, as per its website, the SEBI itself does not have even one woman member on its board.

Sinha also said that guidelines for listing of start-ups and internet based companies would be brought after consultations with them.

He said the regulations for Gujarat International Finance Tech City (GIFT) will be issued by April 1.