New Delhi/Bhubaneswar, February 22: Former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das, who hails from Odisha, has been appointed as the ‘Principal Secretary-2’ to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. P K Mishra, another Odia from Sambalpur, has been the Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister since September 11, 2019.
The new appointment of Das as Principal Secretary-2 was approved by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet.
“The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Shri Shaktikanta Das, IAS (Retired) as Principal Secretary-2 to Prime Minister with effect from the date he assumes the office,” said a Central Government circular.
His appointment will be “co-terminus” with the term of the Prime Minister or until further orders, it added.
Das, who remained RBI’s Governor for six years, demitted office in December last year. His tenure as the RBI governor was extended for three years in 2021.
A career diplomat, Das, 67, became the RBI Governor in 2018 after Urjit Patel abruptly resigned.
A 1980-batch Tamil Nadu cadre IAS officer, Das, holds a Master’s Degree in History from Delhi’s St Stephen’s College and a postgraduate degree in public administration from the University of Birmingham.
He was the Economic Affairs Secretary when the Government effected demonetisation in November 2016.
Das joined the Indian Administrative Service in 1980. He has served as the Secretary of the Department of Revenue and Department of Economic Affairs. Post-retirement, he was appointed as a Member of the 15th Finance Commission and G20 Sherpa of India.
Das has vast experience in various areas of governance in the last 38 years. Shri Das has held important positions in the Central and State Governments in the areas of Finance, Taxation, Industries, Infrastructure, etc.
During his long tenure in the Ministry of Finance, Government of India, he was directly associated with the preparation of as many as 8 Union Budgets. Das has also served as India’s Alternate Governor in the World Bank, Asian Development Bank (ADB), New Development Bank (NDB) and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). He has represented India in international fora like the IMF, G20, BRICS, SAARC, etc.
