ACC Clears 20 Joint Secretary-Level Appointments Across Key Ministries; IAS Officers Divesh Sehara, Kuldip Narayan Among Top Picks
In a major round of senior-level bureaucratic appointments, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved the posting of 20 officers to Joint Secretary and Joint Secretary-equivalent positions across several important ministries, departments and autonomous bodies of the Central Government. The appointments are aimed at strengthening policymaking, administrative coordination and programme implementation in sectors ranging from agriculture and financial services to urban development, disaster management, social justice and defence administration.
The appointments, notified by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), involve experienced officers drawn from the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and several other All India and Central Services. The latest exercise reflects the Centre’s continued emphasis on deploying seasoned officers to strategic positions where they can contribute to governance reforms and improve institutional efficiency.
The appointment order has been issued by Manisha Saxena, Secretary, Appointments Committee of the Cabinet and Establishment Officer. According to the notification, all officers have been appointed in Level 14 of the Pay Matrix, carrying a pay scale of ₹1,44,200 to ₹2,18,200, and will assume charge as per the date of joining their respective assignments.
Major Administrative Exercise Covers Multiple Ministries
The latest ACC decisions span a wide range of ministries and departments that play a central role in the functioning of the Union Government.
The appointments cover sectors including:
Administrative Reforms
Agriculture and Farmers Welfare
Atomic Energy
Coal
Consumer Affairs
Corporate Affairs
Defence
Financial Services
Fisheries
Housing and Urban Affairs
Disaster Management
Investment and Public Asset Management
Social Justice and Empowerment
By placing experienced officers in these departments, the government aims to strengthen policy execution while improving coordination between ministries and enhancing administrative effectiveness.
The appointments also reflect the Centre’s ongoing practice of drawing officers from different services and state cadres to bring diverse administrative experience into policymaking at the national level.
IAS Divesh Sehara Appointed Joint Secretary, Financial Services
Among the most significant appointments is that of Divesh Sehara, a 2005-batch IAS officer of the Bihar cadre, who has been appointed Joint Secretary in the Department of Financial Services.
The Department of Financial Services functions under the Ministry of Finance and oversees banking, insurance, financial institutions and financial sector reforms. As Joint Secretary, Sehara is expected to contribute to policy formulation and implementation across one of the government’s most important economic departments.
Another important appointment in the same department is that of Saurabh Kumar, a 2009-batch IAS officer of the Chhattisgarh cadre, who has also been appointed Joint Secretary, Department of Financial Services.
These appointments come at a time when the financial sector continues to witness reforms aimed at strengthening banking systems, expanding financial inclusion and improving regulatory frameworks.
Kuldip Narayan Joins NITI Aayog as Adviser
Another notable appointment is that of Kuldip Narayan, a 2005-batch IAS officer of the Bihar cadre, who has been appointed Adviser at NITI Aayog at the Joint Secretary level.
NITI Aayog serves as the government’s premier public policy think tank and plays a crucial role in long-term policy planning, cooperative federalism and national development strategies.
As Adviser, Kuldip Narayan is expected to contribute to policy research, strategic planning and coordination with central ministries and state governments on key developmental initiatives.
Important Appointments Across Central Ministries
The ACC has approved appointments of several senior officers across different services to key policymaking positions.
The major appointments include:
Avanish Kumar Mishra, Indian Statistical Service (ISS), 2000 batch, appointed Joint Secretary, Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances.
Abhijit Phukon, Indian Economic Service (IES), 2004 batch, appointed Joint Secretary, Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
Anish Kumar, Indian Railway Service of Engineers (IRSE), Civil, 2001 batch, appointed Joint Secretary, Department of Atomic Energy.
Satish Kumar, Indian Railway Service of Electrical Engineers (IRSEE), 2002 batch, appointed Coal Controller at the Joint Secretary level in the Ministry of Coal.
M. Imkongla Jamir, a 2002-batch IAS officer of the Karnataka cadre, appointed Joint Secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs.
Sumit Garg, IRSEE, 2002 batch, appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Investor Education and Protection Fund Authority (IEPFA) under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs at the Joint Secretary level.
Ashutosh Jain, Indian Telecom Service (ITS), 1993 batch, appointed Chairman-cum-Managing Director of the National Handicapped Finance and Development Corporation (NHFDC).
Pravin Laxminarayan Agrawal, a 1994-batch Indian Forest Service (Tripura cadre) officer, appointed Joint Secretary, Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare.
These appointments bring together officers with expertise in statistics, economics, engineering, forestry, telecommunications and public administration to support policymaking across diverse sectors.
Urban Development, Disaster Management and Public Administration Strengthened
The latest ACC order also includes appointments in departments dealing with urban governance, disaster preparedness and institutional development.
Among them:
Gunjan Krishna, a 2004-batch IAS officer of the Karnataka cadre, has been appointed Joint Secretary, Department of Fisheries.
Tejpartap Singh, Indian Railway Traffic Service (IRTS), 1999 batch, becomes Executive Director of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) at the Joint Secretary level.
Kartikaye Mathur, Indian Audit and Accounts Service (IA&AS), 2004 batch, has been appointed Adviser in the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).
Kumar Ravi Kant Singh, a 2008-batch IAS officer of the Uttar Pradesh cadre, has been appointed Joint Secretary, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
Neha Verma, a 2005-batch Indian Forest Service officer of the Uttarakhand cadre, has been appointed Principal Commissioner of the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) at the Joint Secretary level.
These appointments are expected to strengthen urban planning, disaster preparedness, food security and infrastructure development.
Key Appointments in Finance, Training and Social Justice
Several other important organisations have also received new leadership through the ACC’s latest decisions.
These include:
Sudhir Shyam, Indian Economic Service (IES), 1999 batch, appointed Joint Secretary, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM).
V. Lalithalakshmi, a 2008-batch IAS officer of the West Bengal cadre, appointed Professor at the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA) at the Joint Secretary level.
Satya Pal Kumar, Indian Revenue Service (Income Tax), 2005 batch, appointed Director of the Financial Intelligence Unit-India (FIU-IND) at the Joint Secretary level.
Sajeesh Kumar N, Indian Railway Traffic Service (IRTS), 2002 batch, appointed Joint Secretary, Department of Social Justice and Empowerment.
The appointments are expected to strengthen governance in areas ranging from public asset management and anti-money laundering to civil service training and social welfare programmes.
Tenure Conditions Vary Across Officers
According to the DoPT notification, the appointments have been made under different tenure conditions depending upon each officer’s existing period of central deputation.
While several officers have received the standard five-year tenure, others will serve until the completion of their admissible combined or overall deputation period.
In a number of cases, the appointments have been made against vacancies created after incumbent officers completed their tenure or were transferred to new assignments.
The government has also temporarily upgraded a few Director and Deputy Secretary-level posts to the Joint Secretary level in order to accommodate some of the appointments.
Strengthening Governance Across Critical Sectors
The latest ACC appointments underline the Union Government’s continued effort to reinforce administrative capacity by deploying experienced officers across ministries responsible for policy formulation and implementation.
The officers selected belong to a wide spectrum of services, including the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Statistical Service (ISS), Indian Economic Service (IES), Indian Forest Service (IFoS), Indian Railway Services, Indian Telecom Service (ITS), Indian Audit and Accounts Service (IA&AS) and the Indian Revenue Service (IRS).
Their collective expertise is expected to support governance in critical sectors such as agriculture, finance, urban development, disaster management, consumer affairs, food security, public asset management, defence administration, fisheries and social justice.
The Department of Personnel and Training has circulated the appointment orders to all Secretaries to the Government of India, Chief Secretaries of states and Union Territories, and other concerned authorities to facilitate the smooth implementation of the postings. With these appointments, the Centre has taken another significant step toward strengthening leadership across some of the country’s most important policymaking institutions.
