New Delhi, July 23 (JKNS): The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) on Thursday approved key appointments in the Ministry of Education, appointing Naresh Pal Gangwar, IAS (Rajasthan:1994) as Secretary, Department of Higher Education and T.K. Anil Kumar, IAS (Karnataka:1995) as Secretary, Department of School Education and Literacy.
According to an official order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), a copy of which lies with news agency JKNS that, Katikithala Srinivas, IAS (Gujarat:1989) has been appointed as Secretary, Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), while Vineet Joshi, IAS (Manipur:1992), presently Secretary, Department of Higher Education, will take over as Secretary, Ministry of Panchayati Raj after the superannuation of Vivek Bhardwaj on July 31.
The ACC also appointed Naresh Pal Gangwar, IAS (Rajasthan:1994) as Secretary, Department of Higher Education, Piyush Goyal, IAS (Nagaland:1994) as Secretary General of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), and T.K. Anil Kumar, IAS (Karnataka:1995) as Secretary, Department of School Education and Literacy.
Among other key appointments, Sushil Kumar Lohani, IAS (Odisha:1995) has been named Officer on Special Duty in the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying before taking charge as Secretary of the department. Archana Varma, IAS (Assam-Meghalaya:1995) will assume charge as Secretary, Department of Official Language in the Ministry of Home Affairs after the retirement of Ansuli Arya in September.
The ACC further appointed Keshav Chandra, IAS (AGMUT:1995) as Secretary, Ministry of Mines, D. Thara, IAS (Gujarat:1995) as Secretary, Department of Capital Development in the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, B. Rajender, IAS (Bihar:1996) as Director of Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA), Chandra Bhushan Kumar, IAS (AGMUT:1995) as Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Satendra Singh, IAS (Jharkhand:1995) as Secretary, Department of Urban Development, and Suchindra Misra, IDAS:1992 as Secretary, National Commission for Minorities.
The committee also approved the in-situ upgradation of Mritunjay Kumar Narayan, IAS, Registrar General of India and Census Commissioner; Santosh Kumar Yadav, IAS, Chairman, National Highways Authority of India (NHAI); Rajeev Singh Thakur, IAS, Adviser, NITI Aayog; and Dilip Kumar, IAS, Director General (Training), Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, to the rank and pay of Secretary to the Government of India as a personal measure.
The appointments and elevations are part of the Centre’s periodic administrative restructuring aimed at strengthening governance and ensuring continuity in key ministries and departments. (JKNS)
