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Amitabh Kant resigns as G20 Sherpa after 45 years in govt service
Amitabh Kant, a retired 1980-batch IAS officer, was appointed as India’s G20 Sherpa in July 2022, months before India assumed the G20 Presidency.
Amitabh Kant, who managed diverse assignments during his 45 years in government service, has resigned as the G20 Sherpa.
The former NITI Aayog Chief made the announcement in a post on LinkedIn on Monday where he said he would be embracing new opportunities and moving forward in life.
“After 45 years of dedicated government service, I have made the decision to embrace new opportunities and move forward in life. I am incredibly thankful to the Prime Minister of India for accepting my resignation as G20 Sherpa and for having given me the opportunity to drive a range of developmental initiatives and contribute to the growth, development, and progress of India,” Kant said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
Kant, a retired 1980-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, was appointed as India’s G20 Sherpa in July 2022.
“I now look forward to contributing to India’s transformational journey towards Viksit Bharat by facilitating and supporting free enterprise, startups, think tanks, and academic institutions,” he added.
As the G20 sherpa, Kant presided over G20 meetings across every state and Union Territory, engaging local artists and craftsmen and promoting local cuisines.
What is a G20 Sherpa?
A G20 Sherpa serves as a personal representative of a country in the annual G20 summit, where the leading economies of the world participates in deliberations and meetings on the pressing issues concerning the world.
The G20 countries appoints their own Sherpas, a term that is derived from the sherpas of Nepal, who guide mountaineers in the Himalayas during expeditions.
Kant also served as the CEO of NITI Aayog from 2016-2022, where he said he had the privilege of being part of the transformative Aspirational Districts Programme.
Under the programme, the committee uplifted 115 of India's most backward districts by improving their socio-economic indicators and creating opportunities for lakhs of people.
