Know Your Babu: New commerce secretary Anup Wadhawan; 10 Things to Know

LAST week, the government announced the appointment of 1985 batch Uttarakhand cadre IAS — Anup Wadhawan, presently a special secretary in the department of commerce — as India’s new commerce secretary on July 31, 2018, when incumbent Ms Rita Teotia, 1981 batch Gujarat cadre IAS, retires. A former director in the PMO, a veteran in economic and commerce departments and also a PhD in economics, Wadhawan is already appointed as the OSD in the commerce department in the run-up to his elevation as secretary. Here are 10 things to know about India’s new commerce secretary:

3 commerce secretaries in one month? Unusual yes, but well within rules

Rita Teaotia

COMMERCE secretary and 1981 batch Gujarat cadre IAS Rita Teaotia has been on leave for over a fortnight and the government has given additional charge of the post of commerce secretary to two secretaries — first to DIPP secretary Ramesh Abhishek for a period between December 17, 2016 and December 25, 2016, and then to…

Govt effects secretary level reshuffle; new commerce, power and civil aviation secretaries appointed

Chanakya

IN A major administrative reshuffle involving secretaries of the Government of India, new appointments of the top bureaucrats were made for key ministries such as commerce, power and civil aviation. It was quite an overhaul as a number of secretaries were also laterally transferred from one ministry to another. Here are the key appointments and later shifts:

India Show in Hong Kong: Commerce secretary Rajeev Kher to lead India delegation

AWAY from the heat and dust of elections in India, there will be an “India Show” in Hong Kong between April 27 and 30. And senior bureaucrat of 1980 batch and Union commerce secretary Rajeev Kher will lead a delegation to this city state, known to be a bridgehead to do business with China. It is expected that Indian exporters will get an opportunity to forge…

Rajeev Kher appointed as commerce secretary; to take over from padma shri SR Rao on Jan 31

THE government has handpicked commerce ministry veteran and 1980 batch UP cadre IAS officer Rajeev Kher as the country’s next commerce secretary. Kher, who has been in Udyog Bhawan since July 2006, will succeed 1978 batch Gujarat cadre IAS SR Rao on January 31. Incidentally, Rao has a rare distinction of being the only serving IAS officer now who is a…

Will Saurabh Chandra be a full-fledged commerce secretary; what’s about DEA?

THE announcement that 1978 batch UP cadre IAS and DIPP secretary Saurabh Chandra will hold additional charge of commerce department could be interpreted in two ways. Is it yet another instance of government’s adhocism? Or it should be seen as a breather for principal secretary to PM Pulok Chatterji and cabinet secretary Ajit K Seth to sit down together with a list of impending vacancies and possible contenders, and mark those in one go. But who will then be commerce secretary, one of the few departments which the government usually hands over to…

Pulok’s trusted man Jawed Usmani may be named India’s next commerce secretary

Jawed Usmani, a 1978 batch UP cadre IAS and one of Pulok Chatterji’s most trusted men, is likely to be named as India’s next commerce secretary. As incumbent Rahul Khullar of 1975 batch is likely to take up an assignment at Brussels in March, the government may bring in star bureaucrat Usmani who had two innings in Prime Minister’s Office, the first between 1996 and 2001, and then under Manmohan Singh between 2004 and 2007. Usmani then moved to Washington DC to join as senior adviser to India’s executive director in the World Bank. Being the senior most IAS of 1978 batch, Usmani’s appointment will also mean all his secretary-empanelled batch-mates immediately getting an elevation from the current rank of additional secretary to the position of special secretary.
A product of IIM-Ahmedabad, Usmani is also armed with a degree of MSc, social policy and planning from London School of Economics. Since November 2010, Usmani has been on sabbatical, and was based in New York. He was affiliated with Center for the Advanced Study of India (CASI) under the University of Pennsylvania as a visiting scholar, doing research on climate change and India.

Both in PMO and World Bank, Usmani worked under Pulok Chatterji, current principal secretary to PM. The cabinet secretary with suggestions from PM (read principal secretary to PM) decides secretary’s placements.

DIPP secretary PK Chaudhery, a 1977 batch Haryana cadre IAS and his batch-mate and financial services secretary DK Mittal are the two other contenders for the coveted commerce secretary’s position. Chaudhery has recently been given additional charge of the textile ministry after Rita Menon’s retirement. Mittal is also a contender for another key post, DEA (department of economic affairs) secretary that may crop up soon, as 1976 batch Tamil Nadu cadre IAS R Gopalan is retiring in April 2012. A 1977 batch UP cadre IAS, GC Chaturvedi, who is now the petroleum secretary, may also be considered for the post of DEA secretary. Once Usmani is placed, another 1978 batch IAS Arvind Mayaram, who had a long innings in finance ministry, may get a secretary’s posting in one of the economic ministries.