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One of the names rumoured to be in the list of likely persons to be moved out from important offices, once the National Democratic Alliance government came to power in May this year, was that of Arvind Mayaram.
The 1978 Rajasthan cadre official is considered close to the Congress, especially former finance minister P Chidambaram. That Mayaram's mother, Indira Mayaram, was a former minister in a Congress government in Rajasthan is also seen to have worked against him. Indira Mayaram held independent charge of finance and taxation, and was incharge of Indira Gandhi Nahar Project in the Ashok Gehlot government.
Unlike Rajiv Takru, secretary in the department of finance, who was also on the Modi government's radar and was shifted out soon after the Budget, a decision on Mayaram came later. He continued to be the only media face among bureaucrats even as late as on Wednesday, when his transfer order became effective.
Mayaram took charge as secretary in the ministry of finance in August 2012, after Chidambaram moved in there from the home ministry. He had earlier handled capital markets and infrastructure divisions in the ministry of finance. It was during this period that the United Progressive Alliance government pushed for public private partnership projects in the infrastructure sector. National Skill Development Corporation, too, was formed during this time. In the interim-four-year period, from October 2008 till July 2012, as additional secretary and then special secretary in the ministry of rural development, he handled the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme. He is due for superannuation on October 31 next year.
