New Delhi: The Central Government recently executed a major secretary-level reshuffle, promoting five officers to key positions within the secretariat. Currently, only four secretary-rank positions remain vacant.
IAS officer Apurva Chandra who previously served as Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, has now been appointed as the Secretary for the Department of Health and Family Welfare. Chandra is a 1988 batch officer of the Maharashtra cadre.
IAS officer Sukhbir Singh Sandhu has been appointed as Secretary to the Lokpal on a contractual basis for one year. Sandhu is a retired 1988 batch officer of Uttarakhand cadre, and previously served as the Chief Secretary of Uttarakhand.
Additionally, IAS officer Raj Kumar Goyal has been posted as Secretary for the Department of Border Management, Ministry of Home Affairs. Goyal is a 1990 batch officer of UT cadre.
IAS officer Niten Chandra will serve as Secretary, Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare, Ministry of Defence. The 1990 batch officer is currently serving as the Secretary, Department of Legal Affairs, Ministry of Law & Justice.
IAS officer K Moses Chalai has been posted as Secretary, Inter State Council Secretariat, Ministry of Home Affairs. From the 1990 batch, the officer has been serving as Secretary, North Eastern Council Secretariat, Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region.
IAS officer Anil Malik has been appointed as Secretary, Ministry of Women and Child Development, succeeding IAS Indevar Pandey upon his superannuation on February 29, 2024. Malik is a 1991 batch officer from the Haryana cadre.
Other key appointments include IAS officer Sumita Dawra as Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment, and IAS officer Vijay Kumar as Chairman of the Inland Waterways Authority of India. IAS officer Sanjay Jaju has been appointed as Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting.
Several officers have also been in-situ upgraded to the level of Special Secretary, including IAS P Daniel as Secretary, Central Vigilance Commission; IAS Rashmi Chowdhary as Secretary, Central Information Commission, Department of Personnel and Training; IAS A Neeraja as Special Secretary, Department of Fertilizers; and IAS Shyam Bhagat Negi as Special Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat (SR).
Additionally, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved the appointment of IAS Reeta Vasishta as Member Secretary of the 22nd Law Commission of India.
