Shaktikanta Das new Economic Affairs Secretary; 16 top bureaucratic changes effected

New Delhi: In a major top-level bureaucratic shakeup, Shaktikanta Das on Friday was named new Economic Affairs Secretary and would be replaced by Gujarat cadre IAS officer Hasmukh Adhia in Department of Revenue, while former Air India chief Sunil Arora will become I&B Secretary.

As many as 16 appointments were approved on Friday by the Appointments Committee of Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and include 15 RPT 15 new Secretaries and one for the position of National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) Chairman, a coveted post that has gone to Madhya Pradesh cadre IAS officer of 1982 batch Raghav Chandra.

As per the order issued late tonight by the Department of Personnel and Training, Air India's current Chairman and Managing Director Rohit Nandan will replace Arora as Secretary in the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.

Deputy Election Commissioner Vinod Zutshi has been appointed as new Tourism Secretary.

Das, 1980 batch IAS officer of Tamil Nadu cadre, would replace Rajiv Mehrishi as Economic Affairs Secretary upon his superannuation on August 31. Financial Services Secretary Hasmukh Adhia, an IAS officer of Gujarat cadre, will replace Das as Revenue Secretary.

Tapan Ray, another Gujarat cadre IAS officer, would become Corporate Affairs Secretary in place of Anjuly Chib Duggal, who would replace Adhia in the Department of Financial Services. The changes in Finance Ministry comes months ahead of the Union Budget and also at a time when a one-time compliance window is open as part of the new black money law.

Arora, currently Secretary in Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, would replace Bimal Julka as Secretary in the Information and Broadcasting Ministry on his superannuation on Monday.

The appointment of Arora, a 1980-batch IAS officer of Rajasthan cadre, comes at a time when the I&B ministry is in the midst of several important activities including the e-auctions of Phase III FM radio stations and Phase III and IV of Digitisation.

The I&B ministry has also been under fire over the two-month-old impasse at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) where students are demanding removal of Gajendra Chauhan as its chairman. Earlier, Arora has functioned as the CMD of Air India.