In April 2025, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) approved a major bureaucratic reshuffle across key Ministries, particularly in the Ministry of Finance(MoF), with the appointment of new Secretaries to streamline administrative leadership and policy implementation.
Key Appointments in the MoF:
i.Arvind Shrivastava, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of 1994 batch from Karnataka cadre, has been appointed as Secretary, Department of Revenue (DoR), MoF.
- He replaced Manoj Govil, who has been appointed as Secretary (Coordination), Cabinet Secretariat.
- He previously served as Additional Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
ii.Vumlunmang Vualnam, an IAS Officer of 1992 batch from Manipur cadre , has been appointed as Secretary, Department of Expenditure (DoE) under the MoF.
- He is currently serving as Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation(MoCA).
iii.Anuradha Thakur, IAS officer of 1994 batch from Himachal Pradesh(HP) cadre, has been designated as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA), MoF.
- She will take over as Secretary, DEA after Ajay Seth’s superannuation on 30th June 2025.
- She was previously serving as Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Corporate Affairs(MCA).
iv.K. Moses Chalai, a 1990-batch IAS officer from the Manipur cadre, has been appointed as the Secretary of the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE), MoF. Prior to this appointment, he served as the Secretary of the Inter-State Council Secretariat within the Ministry of Home Affairs(MHA) .
- He succeeds Arunish Chawla, who was holding additional charge of the DPE while serving as Secretary of the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM), MoF.
Other Major Appointments:
i.Samir Kumar Sinha, a 1994-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer from the Assam-Meghalaya cadre, has been appointed as the Secretary of the MoCA. He succeeds Vumlunmang Vualnam.
- Prior to this appointment, he served as the Additional Secretary and Director General(DG)(Acquisition) in the Ministry of Defence(MoD).
ii.Santosh Kumar Sarangi, a 1994-batch IAS officer from the Odisha cadre,
has been appointed as Secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE).
- He is currently working as the Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT).
iii.Nikunja Bihari Dhal, 1993-batch IAS officer from the Odisha cadre, has been appointed as Secretary, Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs(MoPA).
- This appointment follows the retirement of Umang Narula, a 1989-batch IAS officer from the Arunachal Pradesh-Goa-Mizoram and Union Territory (AGMUT) cadre, who is set to superannuate on June 30, 2025 .
- Prior to this central deputation, Nikunja Bihari Dhal served as the Additional Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister of Odisha and held the position of Chief Electoral Officer in the state.
iv.Vivek Aggarwal, a 1994 batch IAS officer from Madhya Pradesh(MP) cadre and currently Additional Secretary in the Department of Revenue, will now serve as Secretary, Ministry of Culture(MoC). He also held the additional charge of Director, Financial Intelligence Unit-India (FIU-IND).
v.Meeta R. Lochan, a 1990-batch IAS officer of the Maharashtra cadre, as Secretary, National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC), under the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment(MoSJE).
- She will assume the new role upon the superannuation of the incumbent Secretary, A. Neeraja, an Indian Forest Service (IFoS) officer of the 1990 batch from the Uttar Pradesh cadre, who is set to retire on 31st May 2025.
vi.Rajit Punhani, a 1991-batch IAS officer of the Bihar cadre, as Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), Government of India(GOI).
- He will assume his new role on 1st July 2025, succeeding Atul Kumar Tiwari, a 1990-batch IAS officer of the Karnataka cadre, who is set to retire on 30th June 2025.
vii.Ashish Srivastava, a 1992-batch IAS officer of the Madhya Pradesh cadre, to the position of Secretary, Inter-State Council Secretariat (ISCS) under the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
- He succeeds K. Moses Chalai, a 1990-batch IAS officer of the Manipur cadre, who has been appointed as Secretary, Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) under the Ministry of Finance(MoF).
- Prior to this appointment, Ashish Srivastava was serving as Advisor in the Inter-State Council Secretariat.
viii. Rakesh Kumar Verma, a 1993-batch IAS officer of the Punjab cadre, as the Director General (DG) of the India International Institute of Democracy and Election Management (IIIDEM).
- The position of Director General at IIIDEM has been temporarily upgraded to the rank and pay of Secretary to the Government of India.
- Prior to this appointment, Rakesh Kumar Verma served as Additional Secretary in the Department of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation, under the Ministry of Jal Shakti.
ix.Rajesh Agarwal, a 1994-batch IAS officer of the Manipur cadre, as the next Secretary of the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry(MoC).
- He will assume the role of Secretary following the superannuation of Sunil Barthwal, a 1989-batch IAS officer of the Bihar cadre, on 30th September 2025
x.Pallavi Jain Govil, a 1994-batch IAS officer of the Madhya Pradesh cadre, as the Secretary of the Department of Youth Affairs, under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
- She succeeds Meeta R. Lochan, a 1990-batch IAS officer of the Maharashtra cadre, who has been appointed as the Secretary of the National Commission for Backward Classes under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
xi.Nidhi Chhibber, a 1994-batch IAS officer of the Chhattisgarh cadre, as the Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI).
- She will assume the role of Secretary, MoFPI upon the superannuation of the current Secretary, Subrata Gupta, on 31st May 2025.
xii.Hari Ranjan Rao, a 1994-batch IAS officer of the Madhya Pradesh cadre, as the Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the Department of Sports, under the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MoYAS).
- He will assume the role of Secretary, Department of Sports, upon the superannuation of the current Secretary, Sujata Chaturvedi, on 30th June 2025.
xiii.Rajesh Kumar Sinha, a 1994-batch IAS officer of the Kerala cadre, to the position of Special Secretary in the Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways.
- This elevation is a temporary upgradation of his current role as Additional Secretary within the same ministry.
xiv.Ranjana Chopra, a 1994-batch IAS officer of the Odisha cadre, to the position of Special Secretary & Financial Advisor in the Ministry of Culture, Government of India.
- This elevation recognizes her continued contributions to the ministry, where she has been serving as Additional Secretary & Financial Advisor since October 2022.
Note: the tenure of Bharat Lal, IFoS (GJ:1988) (Retd.), Secretary General, National Human Rights Commission, has been extended on a contract basis for one year beyond June 30, 2025, or until further orders.
