Rajiv Gauba named as Cabinet Secretary for two years

The government has announced the appointment of the Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba as Cabinet Secretary for two years. As per the official order, his tenure will be effective from August 30, 2019.

The order is issued by the Department of Personnel and Training. It states that the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet had also approved his appointment as Officer on Special Duty in the Cabinet Secretariat with immediate effect till he takes over as Cabinet Secretary from August 30.

Gauba will take charge from P.K. Sinha, who was appointed Cabinet Secretary in 2015 who continues since then, getting several extensions beyond his two-year tenure. He was a 1982 batch IAS officer of Jharkhand cadre. Born in Punjab, Gauba had graduated in physics from Patna University. He had served in Jharkhand as the chief secretary for 15 months before returning to serve in the central government in 2016.

As the Union home secretary, he has handling issues such as internal security, militancy in Jammu and Kashmir and the Northeast, Maoist problems in the central and east India besides other issues.

With Gauba there are major changes in Defence, Ajay Kumar, Secretary, Defence Production, has been shifted as Secretary, Defence, but without two years’ tenure.

Kumar is a 1985 batch IAS officer belonging to Kerala cadre and will replace Sanjay Mitra, who was Defence Secretary for more than two years and on completion of his two-year tenure in June this year, he was given three months’ extension.

In Defence Production, Kumar has been replaced with Subhash Chandra, a 1986 batch Karnataka cadre IAS officer.

Another 1985 batch IAS officer Brij Kumar Agarwal has been appointed Secretary, Lokpal. He is from Himachal Pradesh cadre.