Inside Raisina Hill: Weekly Wrap From The Power Corridor-VIII

As one walks down the Hill along the Rajpath, now renamed Kartavya Path, come other edifices — Rail Bhavan, Krishi Bhavan, and Shashtri Bhavan on one side and Sena Bhavan, Udyog Bhavan and Vanijya Bhavan on the other. The bureaucrats who adorn the offices in these buildings decide on India's economic, social, and industrial policies. There are many tales to be told from the corridors of these grandiose buildings. We let you in on some of them here in this week's edition of "Inside Raisina Hill".

1994-Batch: Ahead In Ruling The Roost?

Nobody bats an eyelid when the Government of India does a bureaucratic reshuffle. These are routine administrative procedures, more often than not prompted by vacancies or strategic needs.

But this time it was different. One particular batch of IAS officers has emerged prominently in recent reshuffles. The 1994 batch has seen a major elevation, with nine officers promoted from Additional Secretary to Secretary, and two others appointed Special Secretaries.

Such concentration of a particular batch of IAS officers is unprecedented in recent times.

Many of these newly appointed secretaries have earlier served in critical positions at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and the Cabinet Secretariat. For example: Arvind Srivastava, earlier an Additional Secretary in the PMO, has now been appointed Revenue Secretary in the Finance Ministry.

Anuradha Thakur, another senior officer from the same batch, had formerly served as Joint Secretary in the Cabinet Secretariat. Until recently, she was an Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Corporate Affairs. She is now Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the Finance Ministry and is set to take over as Secretary of Economic Affairs after the current secretary retires on July 1.

Thus, the 1994 batch has made its mark across key departments, signalling a strong generational shift in administrative leadership.

8th Central Pay Commission Formation Expected By Next Month

Though the Union Cabinet gave its in-principle nod for the constitution of the eighth Central Pay Commission (CPC) in January this year, there has been no news on this in the past three months.

But there are now indications that the government is moving closer to finalising the terms of reference for the 8th CPC, including the names of its chairman and other members.

Sources said the 8th CPC is likely to get a year to prepare its report after extensive consultations with stakeholders, which include the central government, public sector enterprises and state governments.

The revision of the salaries and pensions of central government employees and pensioners takes place every 10 years, taking into account several factors like the overall economic condition of the country, purchasing power, consumption pattern and prices. 

The plan is to see that the 8th CPC submits its report by mid-2026. The salary and pension revisions can then be done retrospectively from January 1, 2026, perhaps from 2027-28.

“There is substantial progress on the terms of reference and members to be appointed for the 8th CPC. Hopefully, these will be notified within the next fortnight,” a senior official said.

“The Department of Expenditure under the Ministry of Finance had, last week, put out an advertisement through a circular, to fill up 35 posts in the 8th CPC on a deputation basis," he added.

Ajay Seth and Giridhar Aramane For IRDAI Top Post

Meanwhile, a race is on for the next IRDAI Chairman. And all eyes are on two seasoned bureaucrats: Finance Secretary Ajay Seth and former Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane.

Seth could be the frontrunner for the coveted position at the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), what with Anuradha Thakur already picked as his successor in the Department of Economic Affairs. The final call is yet to come but is likely to be taken “very soon.”

Seth, a 1987-batch IAS officer from the Karnataka cadre, is scheduled to retire in June 2025. Till then, he will be a prime mover in the Finance Ministry. His illustrious career has landmark achievements like India’s first sovereign green bond and the creation of the Infrastructure Finance Secretariat.

But hold your breath! Giridhar Aramane, the 1988-batch IAS officer from Andhra Pradesh cadre, who retired as Defence Secretary in October 2024, brings his own game to the table. No stranger to the insurance world, Aramane served as Executive Director at IRDAI between 2012 and 2014.

Seth and Aramane have kept mum on their chances, but the buzz in Delhi circles is loud and clear: A big announcement is 'round the corner.

The IRDAI chair is a heavyweight position, with a tenure stretching up to the age of 65. As the government gears up to make its choice, the finishing line is probably in sight.

Selection For Board-Level Positions In CPSEs Restarts

With the government appointing two new members to the Public Enterprise Selection Board (PESB), indications are that the long-stalled process of selecting candidates for board-level positions in the Schedule “B” and Schedule “C” Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) will begin soon.

Last week, the government appointed 1990-batch retired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Kerala cadre, Alkesh Kumar Sharma, and retired 1985-batch Indian Railway Service of Electrical Engineers (IRSEE) officer Roop Narayan Sunkar, as members of the PESB.

Sharma had retired as Secretary (Coordination) in the Cabinet Secretariat, and Sunkar as member (Infrastructure) in the Railway Board.

The two former officers have replaced Sailesh, a retired 1985-batch IAS officer from the Assam-Meghalaya cadre, and Amarjit Sinha, a retired IAS officer of the 1983-batch from the Bihar cadre.

The selection process for getting professionals at board-level positions in Schedule “B” and Schedule “C” CPSEs was on hold due to lack of quorum in the PESB.

However, with fresh appointments in the public sector head-hunter body, whispers are doing the rounds in the power corridors that the stalled selection interviews in the CPSEs would be put on fast track.

Justice Dinesh Maheshwari to Head 23rd Law Commission

The legal grapevine is sizzling this April, with the big headline — Justice (retd.) Dinesh Maheshwari is back in the news. He’s just been appointed Chairperson of the 23rd Law Commission, and the timing is significant.

The former Supreme Court judge is known for his no-nonsense verdicts. Sources revealed the appointment has created flutters in Delhi’s power corridors, as the buzz around the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) is heating up again.

For those not following this legal soap opera, the UCC is a proposal to replace various religious personal laws with a uniform set of civil laws.

Apart from Maheshwari heading the body, the commission has an array of legal stars — lawyer Hitesh Jain and academician P Verma. Verma was in the last commission and observed the UCC chaos firsthand.

There are other legal eagles from the Department of Legal Affairs. Insiders feel the government may pull in a few more “part-time” names — a judge or two.

The team officially came together in September 2024, with a three-year term till August 2027. However, with elections and political stakes high, the real action may unfold much sooner than expected.

To recap, the 22nd Law Commission went around the length and breadth of the country, collecting feedback through more than 70 consultations. The result was a massive 749-page draft report.

Then came the twist: Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, who was leading the commission, got picked as Lokpal. And the UCC file was left to gather dust.

Interestingly, the 21st Commission had flatly declared the UCC as “neither necessary nor desirable”. Clearly, not everyone’s on the same legal page.

Power Games At NTPC: Kaun Banega CMD?

The drama in the race for the NTPC chief’s post has just turned more interesting. If power corridor grapevines are to be believed, a star-studded list of contenders for the coveted position is in the making. And the list reads like a ‘who’s who’ of the power and energy sector.

It includes top-notch energy professionals like Shivam Srivastava (Director, Fuel, NTPC), Bhupendra R. Gupta (Director, Technical, THDC), Ravindra Kumar (Director, Operations, NTPC), Shaswattam (Executive Director, NTPC), Somes Bandyopadhyay (MD, GSECL), Kapil Kumar Gupta (Director, Finance, MMTC), Mukesh Choudhary (Director, Marketing, CIL), Ajit Kumar Panda (Director, Projects & Services, CCIL), Thangarajan Subash Chandira Bosh (CEO, REC), Rajil Srivastava (Executive Director, Project Management, PGCIL), Sanoj Kumar Jha (Principal Secretary, IAS, Child & Women Dept), and Abhay Arun Harne (Director, MSEB Mahagenco, MSPGCL).

Quite a star-studded line-up indeed!

The Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) is yet to confirm interview dates. But there's always the possibility that the final pick may be somebody from outside the list. Well-placed Ministry sources said, “There’s a strong feeling that the PMO may step in to steer the process”.

In that case, the PESB has to shift the onus to a Search-cum-Selection Committee. That would be an indication of shifting powerplay from boardroom protocol to high-stakes political strategy. The behind-the-scenes actions have just started, and surprise moves may pop up in the days ahead.

Stay tuned — this power tussle is just heating up!

(Contributed by Pawan Kumar, Mahua Sengupta Venkatesh & Jayanta Roy Chowdhury; anchored by Abhijit Mukhopadhyay)