New Delhi, June 1 (APAC Media): The Competent Authority has appointed IAS Dr. Rajesh Kumar Singh as the Chairman of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Secretary of the Defence Research and Development Department (DRD).
Dr. Singh currently serves as the Defence Secretary and will serve in his new roles in addition to his current responsibilities. The new appointment comes as IAS Dr. Samir V. Kamat’s tenure as the Chairman of DRDO and Secretary of DRD completed on 31 May 2026.Â
Dr. Singh is a 1989 batch officer of the Kerala cadre. He took over as the Defence Secretary on 1st November 2024. Before this, he served as Officer on Special Duty (defence secretary-designate) from August 20, 2024.
Singh has previously served as the Secretary in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry from April 24, 2023, to August 20, 2024. He has also been a Secretary in the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, and Dairying.
Throughout his career, Singh has held key positions including Director (Works and Urban Transport) in the Ministry of Urban Development, Commissioner (Lands) in the Delhi Development Authority, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Joint Secretary in the Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare, and Chief Vigilance Officer of the Food Corporation of India.
He has also held important posts in the Kerala government, such as Secretary of Urban Development and Finance.
