Explore Business Standard
Don’t miss the latest developments in business and finance.
Cabinet Secretary
Senior bureaucrat Arunish Chawla on Thursday took charge as the Secretary, Department of Revenue. A 1992-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Bihar cadre, Chawla served as the Secretary in the Department of Pharmaceuticals in the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers since November 1, 2023. On Wednesday, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet appointed Chawla as the Revenue Secretary. A doctorate in Economics from the London School of Economics, Chawla served as the Managing Director of the Metro Rail Project Patna; and on Foreign Assignment through Department of Economic Affairs as the Senior Economist, International Monetary Fund; Minister (Economic), Embassy of India in Washington DC; and also as Joint Secretary in the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance, the finance ministry statement said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair the concluding day of the fourth National Conference of Chief Secretaries in Delhi on Sunday.According to an official release, the three-day Conference held from 13 to 15 December 2024 will emphasise the evolution and implementation of a common development agenda and blueprint for cohesive action in partnership with the states.It will be another key step towards further boosting the partnership between the Centre and the state governments, the release mentioned.It will lay the ground for collaborative action to harness India's demographic dividend by promoting entrepreneurship, enhancing skilling initiatives, and creating sustainable employment opportunities for both rural and urban populations.Based on the extensive deliberations between central Ministries/departments, NITI Aayog, States/UTs and domain experts, the fourth National Conference will focus on the theme 'Promoting Entrepreneurship, Employment & Skilling - Leveraging the ...
Senior bureaucrat Tuhin Kanta Pandey was on Saturday designated as the new finance secretary, according to an official order. Pandey, a 1987-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of Odisha cadre, is currently the secretary of the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM). The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved designating Pandey as the finance secretary, the order issued by the personnel ministry said. The vacancy was created following the appointment of T V Somanathan as the Cabinet secretary last month. As per the convention, the senior-most secretary in the Union finance ministry is designated as the finance secretary.
TV Somanathan took over as cabinet secretary on Friday following the superannuation of Rajiv Gauba, an official statement said. Gauba had been cabinet secretary since 2019 and completed an unprecedented five-year term. Until recently the Union finance secretary, Somanathan was named as the next cabinet secretary on August 10 with a two-year tenure. A 1987-batch IAS officer of the Tamil Nadu cadre, Somanathan is a qualified chartered accountant, cost accountant and company secretary. He has held important assignments at the Centre, including as joint secretary and later as additional secretary in the Prime Minister's Office. He also served as a joint secretary in the Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs and was deputed as director for corporate affairs at the World Bank in Washington DC. Somanathan was holding the charge of finance secretary and secretary in the Department of Expenditure when he was named cabinet secretary. In Tamil Nadu, he served many key positions such as manag
Senior IAS officer Govind Mohan on Thursday will take charge as the new Union Home Secretary from Ajay Kumar Bhalla, who completes his five year tenure at the sensitive post, official sources said. Mohan, a B.Tech from Banaras Hindu University and PG Diploma from IIM, Ahmedabad, was serving as union culture secretary before his appointment to the top bureaucratic post, next only to the Cabinet Secretary. A 1989 batch IAS officer of Sikkim cadre, Mohan has already joined the Union Home Ministry as an Officer on Special Duty. He has a wide experience of serving both the Sikkim and the central governments in various capacities. Mohan is considered to be one of the brilliant officers presently serving in the government and known for his diligence. He had earlier served the home ministry as additional secretary handling several key divisions, including Union territories. A seasoned bureaucrat, Mohan was also the government's key officer during the COVID-19 pandemic and tasked with ...
Senior bureaucrat Punya Salila Srivastava has been appointed as the new Health Secretary as part of a major top-level bureaucratic reshuffle effected by the Centre on Friday. Srivastava, who is currently Special Secretary in the Prime Minister's Office, will initially take over as the Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the Department of Health and Family Welfare, according to a Personnel Ministry order. She will take over as the Health Secretary after incumbent Apurva Chandra superannuates on September 30, it said. Rajesh Kumar Singh, Secretary for Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, has been named as new Defence Secretary. He will initially take over as the OSD in the Ministry before assuming the post of the Defence Secretary following superannuation of incumbent Aramane Giridhar on October 31, 2024. Minority Affairs Secretary Katikithala Srinivas to be next Housing and Urban Affairs Secretary. Senior bureaucrat Deepti Umashankar has been named new Secretary t
The Centre on Thursday relaxed key rules to give a one-year extension to Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba beyond August 30, 2023, according to a Personnel Ministry order. With the completion of this third extension, he will become the longest serving cabinet secretary of the country. Till now, B D Pande had been the longest serving cabinet secretary from November 2, 1972, to March 31, 1977. Gauba, a former Union home secretary, was in 2019 appointed to the country's top bureaucratic post for two years. He was given one-year extensions in 2021 and then in August last year. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved extension in service to Gauba, a 1982-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Jharkhand cadre, for a further period of one year beyond 30.08.2023, in relaxation of AIS or All India Services (Death-cum-Retirement Benefits or DCRB) Rules, 1958 and and Rule 56 (d) of the Fundamental Rules, it said. The rules allow the central government to gi
Cabinet secretary Rajiv Gauba on Thursday reviewed the progress of the production-linked incentive scheme (PLI) for sectors that are "generally doing very well" like pharma and electronics, a senior official said. Another such review is expected for the remaining sectors, the official said. The scheme was announced in 2021 for 14 sectors such as telecommunication, white goods, textiles, manufacturing of medical devices, automobiles, speciality steel, food products, high-efficiency solar PV modules, advanced chemistry cell battery, drones and pharma with an outlay of Rs 1.97 lakh crore. "Today we covered sectors that are generally doing very well like pharma, electronics and mobile manufacturing, and white goods. Others which have not fully taken off are coming up later," the official said. "They are doing well but they can do better. We are in the process of consulting whether any minor tweaking is required. Once we complete the process, we will be in a position," the official adde