Will UPA extend retirement age of Indian government employees to 62 years in 2010?

WILL the year 2010 see Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh's government raising the retirement age of government employees to 62, benefiting over one lakh employees posted around the country? Though there was a serious deliberation within the government last year to raise the retirement age by two years from the current 60 years, finally it did not materialise. There were even speculations that the move would be formally announced during Prime Minister's speech to the nation during the Independence Day.
If insiderers in at least two important Indian government ministries are to be believed, the Centre has not really discarded the move altogether, and the announcement could come sometime during the current UPA regime, and it could be as early as 2010 though it makes more political sense to announce it three years from now possibly in an election year. But economically speaking, the government with a large fiscal deficit, could lessen the burden by raising the retirement age as it may save more money by not paying the retirement benefits such as gratuity etc. for two years though the government's salary budget would immediately be inflated.
However, such an important decision would not be taken purely on economic considerations. Yet, the proposal is still being considered for two reasons. First, it may earn goodwill from about one lakh government employees and their families who comprise an important contituent in any election. Secondly, raising the retirement age is a continuous process and the UPA may like to go down in the history as a catalyst to this process. In fact, the age of superannuation was increased from 55 to 58 following the 1962 war with China during Jawaharlal Nehru’s time. Then the BJP-led NDA governmnent under Atal Bihari Vajpayee raised it further to 60 in 1998.
Significantly, many civil servants at the top get either extension or post-retirement full-time assignments and virtually work till 62. In some cases, the retirement age is much beyond 62. Secretary in Prime Minister's Office (PMO) and 1972 batch Bihar cadre IAS M N Prasad, for example, is already officially retired and is continuing in the PMO on a contract basis. Similarly, cabinet, home and defence secretaries get two-year fixed tennure, implying that they generally work till almost 62. There are instances where the government gives further extension to an officer's extended period. Cabinet secretary K M Chandrasekhar, a 1970 batch IAS, had completed his two-year tennure as cabinet secretary in June, 2009, but got one year’s extension.
Two bureuaucrats who are much older than the rest are 1958 batch IPS and national security adviser MK Narayanan, and principal secretary to Prime Minister and 1963 batch IAS TKA Nair --- both of whom have a rank of a minister of state.

Geneva-based WTO job on offer for deputy secretary level Indian bureaucrat

YET another high profile global post is on offer for Indian bureaucrats to apply. The DoPT (department of personnel and training) has come out with a circular asking for nomination from officers at the rank of deputy secretary or director to fill up the post of First Secretary (Legal) in Permanent Mission of lndia (PMI), WTO, Geneva. This is the second such major hunt for suitable officers to be posted at WTO's headquarters in Geneva. About four months ago, another hunt for candidates for the post of Counsellor (Services) in the WTO's Permanent Mission of India (PMI), began for a vacancy that was expected to arise on November 21, 2009. The detailed eligibility of the current post of First Secretary (Legal) in Permanent Mission of lndia (PMI), WTO, Geneva are as follows: a) Officers of the rank of deputy secretary/director of Government of lndia or equivalent level are eligible for the post b) Mandatory Requirements i) Officers having 2 years cumulative work experience in commerce, trade and industry ii) Should be familiar with the functioning of the WTO and have knowledge of the legal agreements iii) Should have a degree in Law (LLB) c) Desirable Requirements i) Should have experience in the trade policy division of the department of commerce ii) Should have the ability to handle international negotiations d) It is further required that i) The officer must have worked for at least 2 years at the Centre under the Central Staffing Scheme ii) Should have at least "Very Good" service record iii) Should not be over 54 years of age on the date of occurrence of vacancy iv) The officer should not have been nominated for foreign training or should not be on training or foreign assignment currently v) Should not be on study leave or long leave The names of willing and eligible officers who can be spared by the state government/ministries/departments may be forwarded to this Department along with cadre clearance, vigilance clearance, detailed bio-data and certified ACR grading of the last five years. For officers working in the state government, it may also be ensured that the "Cooling Off", after a previous stint on deputation, if any, is complete and the officer is eligible to be appointed on Central Deputation as per rules. e) Last date of application: 15th December, 2009. Significantly, present current cabinet secretary K M Chandrasekhar, served as Ambassador to the WTO in the Permanent Mission of India (PMI), Geneva. He joined in December 2001 succeeding S Narayanan. Actual copy of DoPT CIRCULAR dated November 16, 2009 Read about the earlier vacancy: A high profile post on offer for WTO, Geneva (August 1, 2009) The actual copy of Haryana chief secretary's list of eligible officers for First Secretary's post at PMI, WTO, Geneva Action & Appointments Following four Judges have been appointed as Supreme Court Judges. In order of seniority, they are: i) Justice Ananga Kumar Patnaik, Chief Justice, Madhya Pradesh High Court ii) Justice Tirath Singh Thakur, Chief Justice, Punjab & Haryana High Court, iii) Justice Kalavamkodath Sivasankara Panicker Radhakrishnan, Chief Justice, Gujarat High Court iv) Justice Surinder Singh Nijjar, Chief Justice, Calcutta High Court

Cabinet secretary to inaugurate workshops on Results Frameworks today; 250 officials to attend

AS many as 250 senior officers of the Central government will be participating in special workshops on Results Framework Documents beginning Tuesday. Cabinet secretary K M Chandrasekhar (in picture) will be inaugurating the first in the series of six workshops which are being organized at the initiative of Performance Management Division of the Cabinet Secretariat.

According to a cabinet secretariat statement, the Results Framework Documents, which are to be annual Performance Management tools, would set out the near term objectives of 59 departments and evolve a system for monitoring the department’s progress through success indicators. The Prime Minister has approved the preparation of Results Framework Documents for all departments of the Government of India, as part of the comprehensive Performance Monitoring & Evaluation System(PMES). This move is likely to improve the functioning of government departments substantially. In fact, 59 departments would be preparing Results Framework Documents, in the first phase of roll out of the government of India’s Performance Monitoring & Evaluation System, which would subsequently be extended to cover in phases all the government of India departments.

Read: Chandrasekhar: India’s third most powerful bureaucrat (August 19, 2009) Who are India's five most powerful bureaucrats? (August 24, 2009)

Action & Appointments a) Pinak Ranjan Chakravarty, a 1977 batch IFS officer and currently High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh, has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to Thailand in succession to Ms Vijaya Latha Reddy. b) Rajeet Mitter, a 1977 batch IFS, currently Ambassador of India to Philippines, will be the next High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh.

Video conferencing cuts short bureaucratic process; may aid state officials take prompt decisions

VIDEO conferencing could turn out be an effective tool to arrange frequent interactions between officers of the Indian Central government departments and those at the state level. Already, it has been used by a few ministries to cut short the conventional bureaucratic process of taking decisions. Sometime back, new secretary of the ministry of corporate affairs R Bandyopadhyay held a meeting with all the Regional Directors (RDs) and Registrars of Companies (ROCs) through video conferencing. Thanks to the deployment of the technology of video conferencing, four Regional Directors and 20 Registrars of Companies spread all over the country interacted with the secretary. The secretary asked the field officers to undertake investor education activities in their respective jurisdiction for which the ministry would be providing necessary technical and financial assistance. Various technical and legal issues were taken up by the field officers, and the officials of the ministry provided necessary clarifications. And yes, all these happened through video conferncing. Mr Bandyopadhyay further stated that such meetings would be held at regular intervals so that the pending issues from both sides were resolved immediately. Significantly, when a committee of secretaries was formed under the chairmanship of cabinet secretary K M Chandrasekhar to address issues related to financial crisis during the fag end of the last government, video conferencing mode was effectively deployed. It turned out to quite effective and time-saving in the backdrop of the need to quickly resolve issues that could have posed as impediments in smooth implementation of government's stimulus packages. Many a time, very important decisions were taken during video conferencing between Central and state officials, which in turn helped the states to fast-track their implementation mode.

New secretary level post created in law ministry The Cabinet on Thursday approved the creation of one post of adviser to the minister for law and justice on contract basis in the rank, pay and status of secretary to the government of India in the ministry of law and justice for a period of one year. The Adviser to the minister will be responsible for carrying out various initiatives which will facilitate the Ministry to take forward the reforms in the legal and judicial sectors as expeditiously as possible.

Action & Appointments a) The assignment of additional charge of the post of joint secretary, department of science and technology to Sanjiv Nair, a 1982 batch UP cadre IAS and Mission Director, Mission for reinvigorating Agriculture in the Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC) has been approved for a period of three months or till a joint secretary is posted in the department or until further orders. b) The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has accorded ex-post-facto approval for continuation of entrusting of additional charge of the post of Development Commissioner, Kandla Special Economic Zone under the department of commerce to Ms Maya D Khem, Development Commissioner, Mundra SEZ, in additional to her own charge, for a perid of three months beyond September 4, 2009

BoI Ranking: India’s Top 3 Most Powerful Woman Bureaucrats are Nirupama Rao, Meera Shankar & Sudha Pillai

HAD current secretary to Planning Commission Sudha Pillai made it to the top as cabinet secretary, India’s top two bureaucrats today would have been women making history in India’s power corridors. Despite being at the top in the merit-cum-seniority list of IAS officers, Ms Pillai missed the bus as the incumbent K M Chandrasekhar was given one year’s extension after the new government was formed. Nevertheless, Nirupama Rao became the foreign secretary in July this year after another powerful IFS and Rao’s batch-mate Meera Shankar (See Picture with US Prez) was made India’s ambassador to US. After BoI’s (babus of india) selection of 5 most powerful bureaucrats, which incidentally had no woman contender, here is the list of top 3 most powerful woman bureaucrats based on feedback of politicians and senior bureaucrats who have an insight of the country’s power corridors. Interestingly, it’s a mere co-incidence that spouses of all three most powerful women bureaucrats who BoI has selected, happen to be senior IAS --- Sudhakar Rao, Ajay Shankar and G K Pillai respectively.

No 1: Nirupama Rao Being the number one Indian Foreign Service officer and only the second woman in the history to become India’s foreign secretary, Nirupama Rao is India’s most powerful bureaucrat today. An MA in English literature, this 1973 batch IFS from Kerala has held key diplomatic positions including minister for press affairs at the Indian Embassy in Washington, deputy chief of mission at the Embassy of India, Moscow, MEA’s official spokesperson and India’s ambassador to China, and yes, she proved her mettle in every important post. No wonder, she was a favourite officer of former external affairs minister Jaswant Singh, and was considered highly efficient during BJP’s regime too. Her biggest challenge today is not just to ensure meaningful diplomacy with Pakistan, but to keep China engaged in a continuous dialogue process. Read: Rao’s take on art of diplomacy (August 25, 2009) No 2: Meera Shankar India’s ambassador to US Meera Shankar who has recently become a newsmaker for writing a letter to Prime Minister’s principal secretary TKA Nair giving details about US companies bribing Indian government officers, is BoI’s choice to be the second most powerful woman bureaucrat today. Born on October 9, 1950, this 1973 batch IFS was earlier India’s ambassador to Germany, and had an earlier innings at Washington (1991-’95) when India liberalized its economy under Dr Manmohan Singh’s tenure as the country’s finance minister. Wife of India’s industry secretary Ajay Shankar, a 1973 batch UP cadre IAS, Mr Shankar’s biggest challenge today is to muster the country’s economic diplomacy and help India achieve a higher than expected growth rate. No 3: Sudha Pillai This 1972 batch Kerala cadre IAS is still considered to be an asset by Team Manmohan Singh, though many in power corridors strongly believe that it was intentional on the part of the government for not giving the highly-sensitive post of cabinet secretary to a woman officer who has better understanding of only social sectors. Her biggest challenger in the race for the post of cabinet secretary was her husband and batch-mate from the same cadre G K Pillai who too lost out after the incumbent Mr Chandrasekhar was given extension. Mr Pillai was then made home secretary with a two-year-term. There’s no doubt that Ms Pillai is still the most powerful women IAS officer today, and keeping in mind her grip on India’s social sector, she is tipped to become the member secretary in the Planning Commission with a rank of a minister! Read: Pati, Patni and Post: It’s Pillai Vs Pillai for next cabinet secretary (May 11, 2009) Read: India’s Top 5 Most Powerful Bureaucrats (August 24, 2009)

PM continues to retain key officers to bring in continuity; now joint secretaries in PMO get extension

IT SEEMS India’s Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh has made it very clear that continuity of key officers in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) is indispensable to effectively execute government’s major action plans during the second innings of the current UPA government. If joint secretary in PMO R Gopalakrishnan’s extension of tenure till June 30, 2011 after the extension of tenure of joint secretary Ms Vini Mahajan and secretary in PMO M N Prasad is any indication, the continuity of key civil servants seems to be a norm in South Block which houses India’s Prime Minister’s Office. Mr Gopalakrishnan, who was overseeing the Bharat Nirman programme in the PMO from the time of its inception, is a 1979 batch Madhya Pradesh cadre IAS. He first got an extension upto September 30 before the term was further extended till June, 2011. Recently, another joint secretary and 1987 batch Punjab cadre IAS Vini Mahajan’s tenure was extended till April 29, 2011. Earlier, Prime Minister decided to retain secretary in PMO and 1972 batch Bihar cadre IAS M N Prasad on a contract basis even after his retirement. No wonder, after Dr Singh assumed office for the second time in May this year, he retained national security adviser MK Narayanan and principal secretary TKA Nair in the same posts with a rank of a minister of state. Also, cabinet secretary K M Chandrasekhar who would have retired in June, 2009, was also given one year’s extension.

Babus In Demand The ministry of home affairs (MHA) in its report card for September said that newly set up National Investigative Agency continues to recruit more officers to strengthen it. In order to fill Group A and Group B posts immediately, a one-time special recruitment process was approved in consultation with the UPSC. A 1975 batch IPS, Radha Vinod Raju, heads the Agency as its Director General.

Action & Appointments a) Air Marshal Ajay Shriniwas Karnik would take over as Senior Air Staff Officer (SASO), of one of the senior most operational commands of the Indian Air Force on October 1, 2009. A Fighter Combat Leader and a Qualified Flying Instructor, he is an alumni of Air War College, University of USAF, Montgomery, USA. b) Lt Gen AS Lamba took over as GOC-in-C Army Training Command, Shimla. The Officer has a vast experience of conventional warfare and unconventional Counter Insurgency operations and had participated in the 1971 Indo-Pakistan War and served in Nagaland, Manipur, and also in Sri Lanka with the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF). c) The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the placement of Anil Bhushan Prasad, a 1976 batch Bihar cadre IAS on compulsory wait in the department of administrative reforms & public grievances in the rank and pay of additional secretary during the period from June1, 2009 to July 23, 2009.

Top five babuz: India’s 5 most powerful bureaucrats are Pulok Chaterji, TKA Nair, KM Chandrasekhar, Ashok Chawla & M Ramachandran

THE list of babuz, 09, is finally out. These 5 master bureaucrats have the power and ability to fix problems, manage crises, push agenda and get things done. They have clouts not just because of their posts and positions, but for their sharp managerial skills, leadership qualities and last but not the least their sound relationship with India’s political heavyweights. Methodology of Selection After taking feedback of over 30 senior bureaucrats and politicians who have mustered in understanding ups and downs of actors in Delhi’s power corridor, babu blogger has finally zeroed in five top babuz, or five most powerful bureaucrats in the country. Consensus and Controversy Whereas there was a consensus on Pulok Chaterji being the most powerful bureaucrat despite being stationed in US now, there was a tie between cabinet secretary K M Chandrasekhar and finance secretary Ashok Chawla for the third position. Also, there were anonymous comments in the blog saying that none of the Indian babuz has the intellectual caliber of Henry Kissinger after babu blogger had claimed that these powerful bureaucrats were Dr Manmohan Singh’s Kissinger-type master bureaucrats. babuz No 1: Pulok Chaterji A 1974 batch IAS from Uttar Pradesh cadre, he is now posted in Washington DC as an executive director of the World Bank. A secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) till recently, Mr Chaterje’s personal equation with Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s family can’t be ignored by anyone in the government including those who are senior to him. The buzz is that the man who had a say in virtually every appointment of the government during Dr Manmohan Singh’s first innings, may soon come back to power pockets of Raisina Hill. Also read, “babuz no 1: Pulok Chaterji is India’s most powerful bureaucrat; find out who are no 2, 3, 4 & 5” posted on August 17, 2009. babuz No 2: TKA Nair Retired over a decade back, this 1963 batch Punjab cadre officer and principal secretary to Prime Minister, was also the secretary to former prime ministers I K Gujral and Atal Bihari Vajpayee. As babu blogger had written earlier, “And his immense clout explains why Reliance Industries’ (RIL) chairman Mukesh Ambani or Jet Airways chairman Naresh Goyal knows who to meet in the Raisina Hills to explain their side of the story on recent gas row and misery of aviation sector respectively,”. babuz No 3: K M Chandrasekhar A 1970 batch IAS of Kerala cadre, K M Chandrasekhar is well regarded among top echelon of civil servants in India. He was the architect of government’s 100 days agenda which various ministries were forced to initiate even before the new government was formed. babuz No 4: Ashok Chawla A 1973 batch IAS from Gujarat cadre, finance secretary Ashok Chawla would have been equally powerful today, had the BJP come to power after the last general election. A former civil aviation secretary, Mr Chawla served as secretary of department of economic affairs (DEA) only to be elevated as finance secretary eight months later. He is a contender to be the next cabinet secretary. babuz No 5: M Ramachandran Urban development secretary M Ramachandran, a 1972 batch Uttaranchal cadre IAS, is gathering clout in power corridors as he is the top contender to be the cabinet secretary next year. Known for following rule books to the core, Mr Ramachandran is pioneered reforms in India’s urban sector. Also read, “Chandrasekhar gets extension; Ramachandran & Chawla to be key contenders for cabinet secretary’s post next year” posted on June 2, 2009.

Babuz no 3: Cabinet secretary K M Chandrasekhar is India’s third most powerful bureaucrat behind Pulok Chaterji & TKA Nair

A WEEK before the announcement of Parliamentary results in May this year, cabinet secretary K M Chandrasekhar, a 1970 batch IAS of Kerala cadre, ordered all secretaries to prepare a 100 days agenda for their respective ministry or department. By then, it was strongly anticipated that Congress would lead a coalition government, and by the time the government was actually formed, its 100 days agenda should be ready. No wonder, once Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh began his second innings from his South Block office, he had no qualm about Mr Chandrasekhar getting a one-year extension. Yes, K M Chandrasekhar who is well regarded among top echelon of civil servants in India is India’s No 3 most powerful bureaucrat. He is babuz no 3, just behind 1974 batch IAS from Uttar Pradesh cadre, Pulok Chaterji and principal secretary to PM TKA Nair, according to feedback received by babu blogger from senior civil servants and politicians. Also, read “babuz no 1: Pulok Chaterji is India’s most powerful bureaucrat” and “babuz no 2: principal secretary to PM TKA Nair is India’s second most powerful bureaucrat” posted on August 17 and 18 respectively. A former ambassador & permanent representative of India in World Trade Organization (WTO) and revenue secretary in the ministry of finance, Mr Chandrasekhar has a post graduation degree in management studies from the University of Leeds in United Kingdom. In fact, Mr Chandrasekhar had a close tie with another secretary three batch junior to him for the third position as many senior IAS officers in power corridors have rather vouched for the latter to be more powerful than the cabinet secretary. Anyway, the 1973 batch officer is babu blogger’s choice as the fourth most powerful bureaucrat in India. Watch out this space in the coming days to check out who are babuz no 4 & 5.

State secretaries to discuss urban issues in New Delhi today Principal secretaries or secretaries of urban development of states and union territories would meet on August 19 in New Delhi to discuss project completion in 65 Mission Cities under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), submission of Quarterly Project Reports (QPRs), utilization of funds and projected requirement of funds etc. The state government officials will also discuss other urban schemes such as national urban sanitation policy, pilot project on implementation of service level benchmarks and accelerated urban water supply programme (AUWSP) etc.

Will Dr Manmohan Singh prescribe 62 as retirement age for govt employees? If it happens, who gain & who lose…

IF Prime Minister of India Dr Manmohan Singh announces raising of Indian civil servants’ retirement age to 62 years in his Independence Day speech on August 15, as is speculated by a section of media, over one lakh government employees who would have retired during the next two years, will gain immediately. Whereas majority would stand to gain by this move, provided it materializes, the proposal would make a few babuz unhappy too. babu blogger here makes an attempt to analyze who among the top bureaucrats will gain whereas who will actually lose thanks to this decision. Why Govt May Announce It In a drought-hit year which will continue to witness impacts of continuing global economic meltdown, the government may like to lessen its financial burden by this innovative mechanism. Whereas government’s salary budget will go up, it may save more money by not paying the retirement benefits such as gratuity etc. Also, it may earn goodwill among the government employees. Who among top bureaucrats gain? Though every officer will gain out of the decision, it’s better for 90 IAS officers who would have retired between August 15 to December 31, 2009. They can now postpone their post-retirement plans by two years. According to babu blogger’s calculation, 509 IAS will be retiring in the next two years beginning August 15 this year, and this could be the happiest lot. For the record, there are 1,237 IAS officers in the age group of 56-60 years. Also, if retirement age is increased to 62, Kerala cadre IAS of 1972 batch and secretary in Planning Commission Sudha Pillai, will again be a contender for the cabinet secretary’s post once the present incumbent K M Chandrasekhar’s term ends next year. Read "Pati, Patni and Post: It's Sudha Pillai vs. G K Pillai for next cabinet secretary", published on May 11, 2009. Who among top bureaucrats lose? As many of the present secretaries will remain on their posts, if the retirement age is increased by two years, those in 1976 batch would have to contend with posts like special secretaries who don’t get a chance to manage a department or ministry independently. Also, 1979 batch IAS officers who would have been additional secretaries soon will have to wait longer to get vacant slots. Raise Of Retirement Age In The Past For the record, the age of superannuation was increased from 55 to 58 following the 1962 war with China during Jawaharlal Nehru’s time. It was then raised to 60 in 1998 by the NDA government.

Yet another Pati, Patni & Post tale: Anjali Prasad to replace her husband as DIPP joint secretary

IN YET another tale of Pati, Patni and Post, a 1983 batch Uttaranchal cadre IAS Anjali Prasad may join the department of industrial policy and promotion (DIPP) under the ministry of commerce and industry as a joint secretary, the post which is lying vacant after her husband N N Prasad, a 1981 batch Uttaranchal cadre IAS got a foreign posting couple of months ago. This is, however, a case where the wife incidentally receives the same post held by her husband earlier, unlike BoI’s earlier tale of “Pati, Patni and Post” in which then commerce secretary and present home secretary G K Pillai was competing with his wife labour secretary Sudha Pillai to clinch the cabinet secretary’s post. But neither of those 1972 batch Kerala cadre IAS succeeded as the current incumbent K M Chandrasekhar got one year’s extension. Significantly, Ms Prasad, a product of Delhi School of Economics, who held various responsibilities at the state level in the field of industry, commerce and finance, also had diplomas on WTO dispute settlement and WIPO diploma in Intellectual Property Rights (IPR). Her husband Mr Prasad, who as a joint secretary in DIPP played a key role in sensitizing the IPR issues, joined as the Chef De Cabinet to the Director General of WIPO, Dr Francis Gurry in Geneva two months ago. The WIPO is the world intellectual property organization and one of the 16 specialised agencies under the United Nations. Ms Prasad is the daughter of former IAS, A N Verma who served as the principal secretary to Prime Minister during Narasimha Rao’s time.

Woman On Top: Nirupama Rao to be India’s next foreign secretary

NIRUPAMA Rao, a 1973 batch IFS and currently Ambassador to China, will be India’s next foreign secretary on the retirement of the present incumbent Shivshankar Menon on July 31, 2009. She is the second woman foreign secretary after Chokila Iyer. Had labour secretary Sudha Pillai clinched the cabinet secretary’s job, country’s top administrative and diplomatic posts would have for the first time been occupied by women officers. Ms Pillai, who was the senior most officer in the merit list, missed the bus as incumbent cabinet secretary K M Chandrasekhar was given one year’s extension. Another prominent foreign service post, India’s ambassador to US, recently went to Meera Shankar, another woman officer and batch-mate of Ms Rao. Incidentally, both the President of the nation and Lok Sabha speaker happen to be women. babu blogger in his post on June 3, 2009, said that “India’s ambassador to China Nirupama Rao’s ability to grab the crucial foreign secretary’s post would determine the degree of celebration for woman leadership in the country.” In fact, Vajpayee government appointed Chokila Iyre, a woman IFS officer, as foreign secretary in 2000, but it was a different story while filling up the top IAS post. An extension of former cabinet secretary B K Chaturvedi had stalled Reva Nayyar, an IAS from Haryana cadre, becoming the first woman cabinet secretary.

Know Your Babu: Nirupama Rao

Date of Birth: December 6, 1950 Educational Qualifications: MA in English Literature from Marathwada University. A Fellow at the Centre for International Affairs in Harvard University specializing on Asia-Pacific security. Postings January 1976 - October 1983: At Indian Missions in Vienna and Colombo, and as Desk Officer in the Southern Africa and Nepal Desks in the ministry of external affairs. 1984 to 1992: Worked in the East Asia division of the MEA, with special focus on India-China relations. October 1993 to October 1995: Minister for Press Affairs at the Indian Embassy in Washington. 1995-May 1998: India's Ambassador to Peru. June 1998 and August 1999: Deputy chief of mission at the Embassy of India, Moscow. June 2001 to October 2002: Joint Secretary (external publicity) and official spokesperson of the MEA, the first woman officer to hold this post in the ministry. Major assignments: Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka and then Indian Ambassador to China from September 2006 Prasad to continue in PMO Continuity seems to be the mantra for Dr Manmohan Singh’s second innings as many officers from the cabinet secretary downwards are holding on to same positions under the new government. M N Prasad, a 1972 batch IAS, will remain a secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), but on contract basis. Mr Prasad, who would have retired now, is continuing in the PMO on a contract basis but in the rank, pay and status of secretary to the government of India with effect from July 1, 2009, and until further orders, a release said.

Urban development secretary M Ramachandran could be the dark horse for clinching defence secretary’s post

URBAN development secretary M Ramachandran, a 1972 batch IAS, may emerge as a surprise candidate for the post of defence secretary after current incumbent Vijay Singh retires in the end of July. Though current secretary of the department of defence production Pradeep Kumar, also a 1972 batch IAS from Haryana cadre, is believed to be the front-runner for the post thanks to his experiences in defence department for sometime now, the government may place Mr Ramachandran for the post as a run-up to his candidature for India’s next cabinet secretary. In fact, Mr Ramachandran, who has played a key role in implementing the government’s flagship urban programme JNNURM, is a key contender for the post of cabinet secretary when K M Chandrasekhar’s one-year extension term comes to an end in June next year. It’s believed that Mr Ramachandran’s experiences in defence would make him even a better candidate for cabinet secretary’s post. Extension & Appointment of Officers Central deputation tenure of M Deena Dayalan, IA&AS (1978), joint secretary & financial advisor, in the department of expenditure has been extended beyond July 11, 2009 till his date of superannuation on February 28, 2010. IPS Posting: The proposal of the ministry of home affairs for the induction of the following IPS officers into the ‘hard-core’ of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) has been approved. The officers are: (i) S K Sinha, IPS (Bihar, 1983) (ii) Ms Kala Ramachandran, IPS (Haryana, 1994) (iii) A K Shukla, IPS (MT, 1986) (iv) M Madana Mohan, IPS (MT, 1987) (v) Rithwik Rudra, IPS (Himachal Pradesh, 1993) Dr Zaidi’s Additional Charge: The government has approved the assignment of additional charge of the functions of Representative of India (ROI) on the Council of International Civil Aviation Organization, (ICAO) to Dr Nasim Zaidi, IAS (UP, 1976), Director General of Civil Aviation under the ministry of civil aviation, for a period of three months beyond April 22, 2009 or till new incumbent on the post of ROI, ICAO is appointed. Babus In Demand The government wants application for filling up the post of Financial Advisor (Joint Secretary level) in Khadi & Village Industries Commission at Mumbai, under the ministry of micro, small and medium enterprises in the pay band of Rs 37400-67000 (PB-4) and grade pay of Rs 10,000 on deputation basis. IAS officer in MP suspended on sodomy charges An IAS officer in Madhya Pradesh was suspended on charges of committing sodomy on a Panchayat secretary in Bhopal on Friday. Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan himself announced the suspension of Bhopal district Janpad Panchayat Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Gyaneshwar Patil, who was allegedly caught by a group of mediapersons when he was with a panchayat employee in the office washroom.

Incredible! Amitabh Kant is front-runner for DMICDC's CEO; may handle USD 90 billion project

FORMER tourism joint secretary and 1980 batch Kerala cadre IAS Amitabh Kant is now the front-runner for heading Delhi Mumbai industrial corridor development corporation (DMICDC) which is the nodal body to execute USD 90 billion India-Japan friendship project, sources close to the development told babu blogger. Mr Kant, who is best known for his six-year-old (2001-2007) stint as joint secretary of tourism ministry, is credited with championing the ‘Incredible India’ campaign (See photograph above). Last month, Tata group chairman Ratan Tata released a book – “Branding India-An Incredible Journey”-- authored by Mr Kant who is now principal secretary and special commissioner (industries) of Government of Kerala. Significantly, the government short-listed a number of infrastructure honchos for the post of chief executive of DMICDC last year, and interviews were conducted in September 2008. But Mr Kant was nowhere in the picture when a search committee including cabinet secretary K M Chandrasekhar, DIPP secretary Ajay Shankar and Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) MD E Sreedharan, screened a few possible names for the post. The main contenders then included senior director of ICICI Venture and former IAS Shailesh Pathak, L&T infrastructure finance’s CEO Suneet Maheshwari, Gammon India’s MD Parvez Umrigar, I D International’s Hong Kong-based director Alok Jain, Ascendas Property Management Services India’s head, IT-SEZ, Rajeev Chadha, former IAS and currently CEO of Tata Realty and Infrastructure Sanjay G Ubale, KEC International’s CEO Ramesh Chandak and Petronet MHB’s MD S B Pandey. But a number of them including Mr Pathak and Mr Ubale were not so keen in taking up the job then. In fact, former industry secretary Ajay Dua was instrumental in shaping the concept of DMICDC, and it was widely believed that Mr Dua would be appointed as its chief executive post retirement. But the government decided to put an age-cap making it impossible for any retired person to contest for the post. It now remains to be seen whether Mr Kant, an officer from Kerala, clicks in power corridors of Delhi when Kerala is the ultimate flavour of the season in Raisina Hill!

Back to North Block: GK Pillai to take over as new home secretary

INDIA'S two most important bureaucrats, cabinet secretary and home secretary, may now be able to discuss security related matters in Malayalam. There is no prize for guessing who is India’s next home secretary! Present commerce secretary G K Pillai, a 1972 batch Kerala cadre IAS, will move to North Block as an OSD (Home) now, and will finally take over as home secretary on June 30, 2009 when current incumbent Madhukar Gupta, a 1970 batch IAS, retires. Mr Pillai, who was also a contender for the post of cabinet secretary along with his wife labour secretary Sudha Pillai, will have a now have a two-year-term in North Block. The government had earlier given one year extension to K M Chandrasekhar, Mr Pillai’s senior from Kerala cadre. Mr Pillai is quite familiar with the home ministry where he was the joint secretary in charge of North East from 1996-2001 before becoming the principal secretary to Kerala CM A K Antony, now defence minister in Manmohan Singh’s cabinet. This has led people in power corridors speculate that Mr Pillai could be selected for defence secretary after the incumbent Vijay Singh retires next month. Now, there have already been speculations over who would become the next defence secretary. Keep reading Babu Blogger’s posts. Delhiite Khullar appointed as commerce secretary THE government has also appointed disinvestment secretary Rahul Khullar of 1975 batch as the next commerce secretary. The man who is one of the few senior officers belonging to the capital city of Delhi, had earlier worked in commerce ministry in various capacities including as joint secretary, additional secretary and special secretary. A doctorate in economics, Mr Khullar also completed a course in economics from Boston University, US. Babus In Demand THE government has asked for nominations for newly instituted “Prime Minister’s Awards for Excellence in Public Administration” to acknowledge, recognize and reward the extraordinary and innovative work done by officers of Central and state governments. All officers of Central and state governments individually or as group or as organizations are eligible for consideration. The last date of receipt of nominations is August 17, 2009. For details, log onto http://darpg.nic.in/ or http://www.asci.org.in/ You can also pick up the phone to contact director (administrative reforms) in the department of administrative reforms and public grievances at 011-23362369

Chandrasekhar gets extension; Ramachandran & Chawla to be key contenders for cabinet secretary’s post next year

WITH the government’s decision to give one year extension to current cabinet secretary K M Chandrasekhar from June 13, 2009, the hope of a woman officer getting the top administrative post in India is over. Had the extension been not given, labour secretary Sudha Pillai, who currently tops the merit-cum-seniority list of IAS officers of 1972 batch, would have clinched the cabinet secretary’s post, which would have been in sync with President of the nation being a woman, and Lok Sabha speaker is all set to be a woman. While writing the piece “Pati, Patni and Post: It’s Sudha Pillai vs. G K Pillai for next cabinet secretary” on May 11, 2009, BoI (Babus of India) mentioned, “Babu Blogger spoke to a number of IAS officers to come to a conclusion that no government can afford to be so gender bias to deprive Ms Pillai though some said in private that no woman would eventually be given that key post….” Significantly, with the current battle being over, urban development secretary M Ramachandran of 1972 batch and finance secretary Ashok Chawla of 1973 batch will be the key contenders for cabinet secretary’s post next year. Mr Ramachandran will qualify to be a contender as he retires just a few days after Mr Chandrasekhar’s one-year-term comes to an end. Once he is selected as the cabinet secretary, he will get a fixed two years term. Finance secretary Chawla, who is known to be politically well connected, is currently ranked at 15 in the merit-cum-seniority list of 1973 batch IAS list, but by mid-June next year, all those above him barring four officers, would be retiring. Even those four officers would not qualify to be contenders for the highest administrative post in the country as they are either in states or are now holding only secretary-equivalent posts. So who are you betting for the next turn --- Mr Ramachandran or Mr Chawla?

Barbora assumes charge as new vice chief of the Air staff Air Marshal Pranab Kumar Barbora assumed charge as the new vice chief of the Air staff at air headquarters on June 1, 2009. He was formerly the air officer commanding-in-chief of IAF’s western air command (WAC) and eastern air command (EAC), a defense ministry release said. Born on December 10, 1950 in Shillong, Mr Barbora was commissioned into the IAF as a fighter pilot on June 13, 1970. A highly experienced aviator with over 3500 hours to his credit, he took part in the 1971 war.

My Take: 30 days of writing on Indian civil servants

WHEN I began writing this blog on Indian civil servants exactly a month ago, a sense of silence prevailed in power corridors of Delhi as the political masters were fighting their electoral battles in various parts of the country. The files were moving in slower pace and babus spent more time guessing who would form the next government. In fact, I made my debut in blogging by posting a report on April 28, 2009, that DEA secretary Ashok Chawla, a 1973 batch IAS officer, was likely to be the next finance secretary of the country. When Mr Chawla was appointed as finance secretary 14 days later, one of my non-bureaucrat friends called me up to say Wah! Yes, he was excited by my postings on power corridors of Delhi, but he was not alone. In the next few days, the nation’s top babus got themselves excited over the unfolding of the Great Indian political saga. Even before the new government took charge, top bureaucrats began finalizing what should be the priority of the next government in the first 100 days of office. During the last one month, BoI (Babus of India) covered a range of topics from North Block officers’ poll prediction to railway officers’ anger towards Lalu Prasad. Yet, if you ask my favourite posting, I would say, it’s Pati, Patni and Post: Sudha Pillai Vs G K Pillai for the next cabinet secretary. Not because I got a number of emails reacting to the post, but I was happy to cover all aspects of the development including the possibility of the current incumbent K M Chandrasekhar getting a year’s extension thereby denying either of the husband and wife duo to reach the civil servant’s top slot. I must acknowledge here that a couple of very senior bureaucrats objected to the choice of the name as they feel the word babu is not an accepted term, and is mainly a creation of media. Yet, most civil servants that I know have said that the name does not matter so long as contents excite them or rather force them to open babusofindia.com in the first half hour of their working day itself. Yes, babu blogger is ready to make one simple promise. If you are a civil servant, or someone who likes to know what’s up in power corridors of India, BoI would not disappoint you. After all, the power of a simple info can sometime make your day…

Powerless Corridors: Officials in commerce & industry ministries felt the heat as there was a day-long power cut on Monday

Don’t call them power corridors anymore. Top bureaucrats and other employees of Delhi’s Udyog Bhawan housing the ministries of commerce and industry felt the heat, literally, on Monday, May 18, as there was a major power failure for over eight hours crippling AC plants, telecommunication, computers to name a few. The work in the two crucial ministries virtually came to a grinding halt on a day when many officials of these two pro-industry ministries would have rejoiced the 30-stock BSE index Sensex surging a record high of over 2000 points. No wonder, even the senior bureaucrats had to call their peons themselves as even calling bells were not functioning. Whereas secretary of DIPP (Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion) Ajay Shankar was lucky as he was in US on a personal visit, his counterpart in commerce ministry G K Pillai had no choice but to undergo the sufferings. Despite the near-emergency situation in the building, and a virtual blackout in corridors of the two ministries, a section of officials including Mr Pillai and their support staff had to prepare for the special meeting called by cabinet secretary K M Chandrasekhar on action plan of the first 100 days of Dr Manmohan Singh’s second innings.

Pati, Patni and Post: It's Sudha Pillai vs. G K Pillai for next cabinet secretary

It’s Pillai vs. Pillai for the top administrative post in India. Labour secretary Sudha Pillai and her spouse and IAS batch-mate commerce secretary G K Pillai have turned out to be key contenders for the post of cabinet secretary, which will lie vacant in mid-June when current incumbent K M Chandrasekhar retires. Whereas Ms Pillai tops the current merit and seniority list of IAS officers of 1972 batch, her husband comes just next to her among 32 officials of the same-batch, who are working at different capacities in the government. If Ms Pillai finally makes it to the key post which will be decided by the next Prime Minister of the country, she will be the first woman to reach the top administrative position. Both Mr and Ms Pillai are from Kerala cadre, which means another Kerala cadre official will definitely succeed Mr Chandrasekhar of 1970 batch who is also from the same cadre. Some of the other prominent officers of the same batch include secretary to PMO M N Prasad (Bihar cadre), information and broadcasting (I&B) secretary Ms Sushma Singh (Jharkhand cadre) and urban development secretary M Ramachandran (Uttaranchal cadre). Babu Blogger spoke to a number of IAS officers to come to a conclusion that no government can afford to be so gender bias to deprive Ms Pillai though some said in private that no woman would eventually be given that key post, and Ms Pillai would be rehabilitated somehow to make way for G K Pillai. But what’s if Mr Chandrasekhar’s term which expires on June 13, 2009, gets extended for one more year. Babu Blogger will give you later a few more perspectives on who else would be benefited if such a development takes place.