S Krishnan is new Meity secy, Neeraj Mittal to lead telecom dept in reshuffle

S Krishnan, a 1989-batch IAS officer, who is serving as Tamil Nadu’s additional chief secretary, has been appointed as the secretary of the Union ministry of electronics and information technology

NEW DELHI: The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) late on Wednesday appointed nearly a dozen Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers to senior positions in the central government as part of a major bureaucratic reshuffle.

Neeraj Mittal, a 1992-batch IAS officer, was shifted out of the state’s IT department to Tamil Nadu Urban Finance and Infrastructure Development Corporation in February this year. (X/neerajmittalias)

According to the order, Tamil Nadu’s additional chief secretary S Krishnan, a 1989-batch IAS officer, has been appointed as the secretary of the Union ministry of electronics and information technology. The ACC has also cleared the appointment of Neeraj Mittal, who was previously principal secretary of Tamil Nadu’s information technology department, as the next telecom secretary. Mittal, a 1992-batch IAS officer, was shifted out to Tamil Nadu Urban Finance and Infrastructure Development Corporation in February this year.

The ACC order also notified the appointment of Vumlunmang Vualnam, a 1992 batch IAS officer, as the civil aviation secretary and Shashi Ranjan Kumar as the next secretary of Union Public Service Commission. Nidhi Khare, additional secretary in the consumer affairs, food and public distribution department has been upgraded as a special secretary. Khare will take over as OSD in the department of land resources on December 1, and assume charge as secretary on December 31.

Umang Narula, a 1989 batch officer, has been appointed secretary of the ministry of parliamentary affairs. Narula, is currently serving as adviser to the Ladakh lieutenant governor. Narula will take over from Gudey Srinivas, an Odisha cadre IAS officer who was been appointed as secretary of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes.

Ashish Upadhyaya, a 1989-batch Madhya Pradesh cadre officer who was special secretary & financial advisor at the power ministry, will take over as secretary of the National Commission for Backward Classes. He will replace Rajeev Ranjan, his batchmate also from the MP cadre, upon his retirement on 31 December.

Neelam Shammi Rao, a Madhya Pradesh IAS officer of the 1992 batch, who is Central Provident Fund Commissioner in the Employees’ Provident Fund Organization has been elevated and will continue to hold the commissioner’s post in the rank and pay of secretary to the central government.

Katikithala Srinivas, IAS (GJ:89), currently serving as director of Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, has been appointed as the secretary of the minority affairs ministry.

Vivek Bhardwaj, a West Bengal cadre officer of the 1990 batch, who is secretary of the ministry of mines, will be posted as Officer on Special Duty at the panchayat raj ministry. He will take over as panchayati raj secretary following the retirement of incumbent, Sunil Kumar, on October 31.

Arunish Chawla, an IAS officer of the Bihar cadre, has been appointed as OSD in the pharmaceuticals department and will succeed S. Aparna, who retires on October 31.