Haryana cadre IAS TVSN Prasad prematurely repatriated; ACC declines IDAS officer’s deputation tenure

THE Appointments Committee of the Cabinet on Wednesday approved the premature repatriation of 1988 batch Haryana cadre IAS and additional secretary in the ministry of home affairs — TVSN Prasad — to his parent cadre, Haryana. And then, the ACC cancelled the appointment of…

2 IPS officers' extension proposals rejected; IPS Anurag Kumar posted in Indian embassy, Washington DC

TWO DAYS Two Instances of Rejection. Yes, during the last two days, there have been two instances of the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) declining proposals of the ministry of home affairs (MHA) for extension of deputation tenure of two IPS officers serving in CRPF. On Tuesday, the ACC declined the MHA’s proposal of extending the deputation tenure of 1991 batch Uttar Pradesh cadre IPS officer Piyush Anand, serving as Inspector General (IG) in CRPF. His deputation tenure ended on January 2, 2018. Only on Monday, the ACC had declined to…

Know Your IAS: World Bank’s new executive director and 1988 batch IAS S Aparna

S Aparna, a 1988 batch IAS officer and principal secretary to Gujarat chief minister, will be the new executive director in the World Bank representing India, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Sri Lanka. She will be replacing SC Garg. Ms Aparna will get a tenure of three years in America’s Washington DC. An M.Sc and M.Phil in zoology before getting into IAS, she later completed her MBA from…

Former PMO director and AGMUT cadre IAS Santosh D Vaidya appointed as Senior Adviser to World Bank ED

Santosh Dattatraya Vaidya, 1998 batch AGMUT cadre IAS and former PMO official, is the new Senior Adviser to the Executive Director, World Bank for three years. He will replace 1997 batch Karnataka cadre IAS LK Atheeq in this Washington DC-located joint secretary-ranked post. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) on Tuesday approved the appointment of Vaidya, who is now a joint secretary in the ministry of…

2 posts for Indian bureaucrats, one each in Washington DC and Beijing; DEA officials to get preference

TWO vacant foreign posts – one in Washington, the other in Beijing. For non-IFS bureaucrats with a command over economics, here is a chance to work either in Indian embassy in USA or in China. The posts which will be vacant are: Counsellor (Economic) in the Economic Wing of the Embassy of India, Beijing, China and Counsellor (Economic) in the Economic Wing of the Embassy of India, Washington, DC. The officers having knowledge of Mandarin would…

Govt still looking for DPS Sandhu’s replacement in World Bank?

THE government has been looking for suitable candidates at the level of deputy secretary or director in Government of India to fill up two posts of adviser to the executive director in the World Bank in place of 1987 batch IRTS officer DPS Sandhu and 1991 batch Karnataka cadre IAS LK Atheeq. It’s quite surprising that the DoPT circular dated August 6, 2015 is searching for Sandhu’s replacement, because an one and half years old circular dated January 27, 2014 (the UPA time) actually…

IAS officer Prashant who is “missing” in Washington DC deemed to have resigned

Prashant, 50, does not write his family name. A West Bengal cadre IAS officer of 1998 batch, he was “missing” in action. The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), the cadre controlling authority of the IAS officers, had no clue, at least officially, where Prashant has been in the recent years after he completed a foreign posting in Washington DC in 2010. He went to US in August 2009 as a…

Post with Dollar Salary: JS level officer wanted in World Bank’s Washington HQ

HERE is a vacancy in Washington, US, for a joint secretary-ranked official. The post of senior adviser to the executive director of World Bank will fall vacant on October 13, 2014, and the government has begun the process of choosing the suitable candidate. But if the earlier trends are any indication, officials from…

Haryana IAS Sukriti Likhi to return home; new vacancy for counsellor (economic) in Washington DC

Sukriti Likhi

DEPUTY secretary and director-level officers may apply for the post of counsellor (economic) in the economic wing of embassy of India in Washington DC, as the term of 1993 batch Haryana cadre IAS Sukriti Likhi is ending soon. Like many a mistake in the past, (Read: DoPT mistakes), the DoPT circular dated April 28, 2014, termed Mrs Likhi as a…

After 7 months of delay, govt chooses cabinet secretariat JS for key economic post at Indian embassy in US

Govind Mohan

IT TOOK the government seven long months to fill up a critical post, Minister (Economic) in Embassy of India, Washington DC, USA. Finally, 1989 batch Sikkim cadre IAS and joint secretary in Cabinet secretariat Govind Mohan was selected for the hot job, according to an ACC order dated June 14, 2012.
But what remained intriguing is the fact that…

No taker of plum post in Washington DC! DoPT asks secretaries to nominate officers

Indian Embassy in Washington

Gosh! The government is struggling hard to find a joint secretary level officer willing to take up a plum post in Washington DC. The designation called “minister, economic” in Indian Embassy at Washington DC, is also fancy. But over seven months after applications were first invited from JS level officers, the DoPT in a letter dated March 22, 2012, wrote to government of India’s secretaries and state chief secretaries asking them to nominate suitable officers for the post still lying vacant.

Officers in the past had lobbied very hard to get postings in Indian missions of US and UK and even in World Bank or IMF. That raises a question why JS level officers did not apply this time round. The DoPT, however, did not spell out the number of applicants which it said is not sufficient.

The DoPT letter says: “Sufficient nominations were not received to finalize the selection of filling up the Joint Secretary level post of Minister (Economic) in economy wing, Embassy of India, Washington DC, under the Department of Economic Affairs, which fell vacant on November 9, 2011”. The DoPT’s earlier advertisement was dated August 4, 2011.

The officers empanelled as joint secretaries, and with two years of experiences at the Centre are eligible to apply for the post. The minimum age is 54 years. The applicant should have prior experiences in trade, commerce, industry, finance, foreign investment, export promotion etc.

The officers who had applied earlier must reapply, the letter said. Significantly, the applicants need to write a 250-word brief stating why he or she is suitable for the job.

Action and Appointments

a) DoPT secretary PK Mishra will continue to hold the additional charge of post of steel secretary for one more month beginning March 17 or until further orders. It indicates that the government has made up its mind to choose the next steel secretary from 1978 batch.

b) Manoj Jhalani, a 1987 batch MP cadre IAS, has been appointed as joint secretary in the health ministry.

US struggles to find its ambassador to India; Indian bureaucrats race for an US posting

Ambassador Rao with Obama in White House

FOR an Indian diplomat or bureaucrat, a posting in Washington DC could be a dream come true, but US is struggling to get its ambassador to India after at least three candidates turned down the offer, reports originating from Washington suggested. The US is yet to find a suitable replacement after its ambassador Tim Roehmer left India in June this year.

Among those who refused to come to New Delhi as US ambassador include Strobe Talbott who had worked in State Department earlier, and John Hamre, president of US think tank, the Centre for Strategic and International Studies. Talbott who is head of US think tank, the Brookings Institute, reportedly has some health problems. The Obama administration has now begun the process all over again as not having the right person to head US embassy in New Delhi could be detrimental to US interests.

Meera Shankar with Hillary Clinton

Contrast this. Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officers weigh an US posting crucial for their career growth. Even after retirement, Indian diplomats and bureaucrats consider a posting in America highly rewarding. Nirupama Rao who had served as India’s foreign secretary chose to become India’s ambassador to US post retirement in place of her batch-mate Meera Shankar. No one doubts the calibre of Rao as a diplomat, but many in South Block feel a highly talented serving IFS officer could have been given the chance. In another posting, secretary to Prime Minister and 1972 batch retired IAS officer MN Prasad has joined as India’s new executive director in World Bank. He has replaced Pulok Chatterji who was called back even before his term got over. Chatterji has recently joined as principal secretary to PM in place of TKA Nair.

For the PMO, sending their trusted men and women to US is also a strategic move as much as they are rewards for being useful. Both Rao and Prasad worked very closely with Prime Minister.

Officer wanted for minister (economic) post in Indian embassy, Washington DC

Indian Embassy, Washington DC

IN ONE of the very few high profile foreign postings that an IAS or a Group A officer can vie for, there is a vacancy. The government is looking for a suitable candidate for the post of Minister (Economic) in Embassy of India, Washington DC at the level of a joint secretary.

The applicant must have been empanelled to hold joint secretary or equivalent posts at the Centre, but he must not be senior enough to be empanelled as additional secretary in next three years. Also, the officer must have worked for at least two years at the Centre under Central Staffing Scheme. He must be below 54 years as on the date of vacancy.

In addition, prior work experiences in trade, commerce, industry, finance, foreign investment, export promotion etc. are required.

In a DoPT circular dated August 4, 2011, it was also mentioned that the applicant must write up to 250 words indicating why he or she is suitable for the position. Such a write-up is normally asked from applicants to private sector or multilateral jobs, and is a rare phenomenon for government positions.

India’s former foreign secretary Nirupama Rao has taken over as the head of the Indian Mission in Washington DC after incumbent Meera Shankar retired. 

Action and Appointments

a) The Appointments Committee of Cabinet has approved extension in deputation tenure of P Michel Vetha Siromony, a 1982 batch Kerala cadre IAS as Director, Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of Youth Development under the department of youth affairs for a period of six months up to December 15, 2011. The position is at the level of a joint secretary.

b) Sameer Kumar Khare, a 1989 batch Assam cadre IAS has been appointed as General Manager (Region), FCI, Bhopal.