Aviation secretary-designate Nasim Zaidi is no newcomer to the business, and he brings an intimate understanding of the sector — both domestic and international — to his next assignment. The 58-year-old, 1976 batch Uttar Pradesh cadre Indian Administrative Services officer will take charge as secretary on December 1.
Zaidi, who has been director-general of civil aviation since November 2008, has been associated with the civil aviation ministry since January 2003. He joined the ministry as a joint secretary and also represented India at the International Civil Aviation Organisation for a three-year period, before taking charge of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.
The aviation sector has been a recurrent theme in Zaidi’s career right from his early years, when he set up a department of civil aviation with a small fleet of aircraft and helicopters to cater to the needs of the Uttar Pradesh government. Later, he served as commissioner for surface transport at provincial level, involving regulatory functions related to safety, security, licensing and training of personnel, economic regulation, taxation and accident investigation.
Zaidi has a master’s degree in public administration from the Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, and has been a Mason fellow for public policy at Harvard Institute for International Development. He has a post-graduate diploma in business finance from Indian Institute of Finance and is a doctorate in biochemistry.
Zaidi’s stint as aviation secretary is expected to be less turbulent than that of M M Nambiar, who retires on November 30, as the sector is beginning to show signs of a revival after a protracted slowdown. But his job will demand greater attention to a turnaround of national carrier Air India and also ensure government support to the beleaguered airline.
Among others things, he will also have to ensure the successful implementation of the Ground Handling Policy, which has been delayed by two years, at the six major airports in the country.
