Bureaucratic Reshuffle: Among Others, Lav Agarwal Known For Handling Covid Crisis Gets New Role

Among 25 officers, who have been shifted from one ministry/department to other, 14 are from the IAS cadre, three from Indian Railway Service, two each from Indian Defence Accounts Service (IDAS) and Indian Telecom Service (ITS), one each from Indian Information Service (IIS), Indian Postal Service, Indian Defence Estate Service and Central Secretariat Service (CSS).

Prominent among the IAS officers is 1996-batch Lav Aggarwal from Anadhra Pradesh cadre. Agarwal, who became a household name during the Covid pandemic crisis, has been appointed Director General, Directorate General of Foreign Trade, Ministry of Commerce & Industry in the rank and pay of Additional Secretary to the Government of India. He is currently holding the post of Additional Secretary, Ministry of Women & Child Development. Aggarwal won accolades from every corner for his efficient communications and handling of situations duing the COVID crisis.   

At a time when India aggressively looking at trade pacts with countries across the world, the Commerce Ministry gets a new Special Secretary. Suchindra Misra (IDAS:92), presently in the Cadre, has been appointed as Special Secretary, Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry in the rank and pay of Secretary to the Government of India by temporarily upgrading a vacant post.

Sonal Mishra, lAS (GJ:97), Additional Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship has been appointed as Chief Labour Commissioner (Central), Ministry of Labour & Employment in the rank and pay of Additional Secretary to the Government of India by keeping the Recruitment Rules of the post in abeyance.

Dilip Kumar, lAS (PB:95), presently in the Cadre, has been appointed as Director General (Training), Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship in the rank and pay of Additional Secretary to the Government of India by temporarily upgrading a vacant post of Joint Secretary in the Ministry.

Shyamal Misra, lAS (HY:96), presently in the Cadre, has been appointed as Administrator (Digital Bharat Nidhi), Department of Telecommunications in the rank and pay of Additional Secretary to the Government of India.

Aneeta C. Meshram, lAS (UP:96), Additional Secretary, Department of Fertilizers, Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers has been appointed as Additional Secretary, President's Secretariat vice Shri Rakesh Gupta, lAS (HY:97) upon his appointment as Additional Secretary, Department of Health & Family Welfare, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare by continuing temporary upgradation of the post held by him.

Caralyn Khongwar Deshmukh, lAS (MP:96), Additional Secretary, Department of Social Justice & Empowerment, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment has been appointed as Additional Secretary, Ministry of Women & Child Development.

Rakesh Gupta, lAS (HY:97), Additional Secretary, President’s Secretariat has been appointed as Additional Secretary, Department of Health & FamilyWelfare, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.

Rabindra Kumar Agarwal, lAS (KL:97), Additional Secretary, Ministry of Cooperation has been appointed as Chairman & Managing Director, Food Corporation of India in the rank and pay of Additional Secretary to the Government of India vice Shri Ashutosh Agnihotri, lAS (AM:99) upon his appointment as Additional Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change.

Srikant Nagulapalli, lAS (AP:98), Additional Secretary, Ministry of Power has been appointed as Director General of Hydrocarbons, Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas in the rank and pay of Additional Secretary to the Government of India.

Shri Anandrao Vishnu Patil, lAS (TN:98), Additional Secretary, Department of School Education & Literacy, Ministry of Education as Additional Secretary, Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education.

Ajoy Sharma, lAS (PB:99), Joint Secretary, Ministry of Labour & Employment has been appointed as Additional Secretary, Ministry of Labour & Employment by restoring the post to Additional Secretary level.

Ashutosh Agnihotri, lAS (AM:99), Chairman & Managing Director, Food Corporation of India has been appointed as Additional Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change.

Solomon Arokiaraj, lAS (AP:2000), Additional Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance has been appointed as Additional Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat by temporarily upgrading a vacant post of DS/Director in the Secretariat.

Niranjan Kr. Sudhansu, lAS (MH:2000), presently in the Cadre, has been appointed as Additional Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship vice Sonal Mishra, lAS (GJ:97) upon her appointment as Chief Labour Commissioner (Central), Ministry of Labour & Employment by continuing the temporary upgradation of the post held by her.

Vandana Jam, CSS:91, Joint Secretary, Department of Health & Family Welfare, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare has been appointed as Additional Secretary & Financial Adviser, Ministry of Culture.

Nidhi Pandey, llS:91, Joint Secretary, Department of Atomic Energy has been appointed as Additional Secretary, Department of Atomic Energy by restoring the post to Additional Secretary level.

D Saibaba, lRSNIE:92, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Power has been appointed as Additional Secretary, Ministry of Power.

Satinder Kumar Bhalla, lTS:92, Secretary, North Eastern Council Secretariat, Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region has been appointed as Secretary, North Eastern Council Secretariat, Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region in the rank and pay of Additional Secretary to the Government of India by restoring the post to Additional Secretary level.

Dinesh Mahur, lTS:92, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Mines has been appointed as Additional Secretary, Department of Defence Production, Ministry of Defence.

Mayank Tiwari, IRSME:93, Joint Secretary, Department of Defence, Ministry of Defence has been appointed as Additional Secretary, Ministry of New & Renewable Energy.

Ateesh Kumar Singh, IRTS:94, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises has been appointed as Additional Secretary, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry by temporarily downgrading a vacant post of Special Secretary in the Department.

Rakesh Mittal, lDES:95, Joint Secretary, Department of Defence, Ministry of Defence has been appointed as Additional Secretary, Department of Defence, Ministry of Defence.

Ms. D. Sai Amutha Devi, IP&TA&FS:95, Joint Secretary, 0/a Secretary (Security), Cabinet Secretariat has been appointed as Additional Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat (SR).

Vedveer Arya, IDAS:97, Additional FA & Joint Secretary, Ministry of Defence (Finance) has been appointed as Additional Secretary & Financial Adviser, Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas.

Meanwhile, two officers are given in-situ promotion to the level of Special Secretary and they include Asit Gopal, IFoS (MP:90), Additional Secretary & Financial Advisor, Ministry of Textiles and Ramesh Krishnamurthi, IRS (lT:92), Central Provident Fund Commissioner, Employees’ Provident Fund Organization.

The ACC has also approved in-situ upgradation of officers to the level of Additional Secretary to the Government of India as a measure personal to them by temporarily upgrading the posts held by them.

They are Mukesh Mangal, ITS:92, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways, Meenaxi Rawat, IES:93, CVO, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd., Mumbai, Archana Sharma Awasthi, IRS (IT:94), Joint Secretary, Department of School Education & Literacy, Ministry of Education, Manoj Kumar, IRS (IT:94), Joint Secretary, Department of Investment & Public Asset Management, Ministry of Finance, Nitesh Kumar Mishra, ICAS:95, Joint Secretary, Department of Youth Affairs, Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Anupam Mishra, IES:95, Joint Secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution and Anu Nagar, IFoS (HP:95), Joint Secretary, Department of Health Research, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.

Others include Alok Prem Nagar, IFoS (HP:95), Joint Secretary, Ministry of Parichayati Raj, Chetan Prakash Jam, IRPS:95, Joint Secretary & Financial Adviser, Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSlR), Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Ballepu Radhika Chakravarthy, IPoS:96, Joint Secretary, National Commission for Women, Ministry of Women & Child Development, Anita Karn, IFoS (GJ:97), Joint Secretary, Department of Food & Public Distribution, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, Debolina Thakur, lA&AS:98, Joint Secretary & Financial Adviser, Department of Social Justice & Empowerment, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment as Additional Secretary & Financial Adviser, Department of Social Justice & Empowerment, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, and Manish Tripathi, IDAS:98, Joint Secretary, Department of Defence, Ministry of Defence.