
Rural Development Secretary Dr Subas Chandra Pani has been appointed as the new secretary of the Planning Commission. The 1972-batch Orissa cadre officer will replace Rajeeva Ratan Shah when he demits office as member secretary.
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet ACC has also cleared the posting of Rita Sharma as secretary, Rural Development. The 1974-batch UP cadre officer is currently Additional Secretary in the Department of Agricultural Research and Education in the Agriculture Ministry. Finance Secretary D Subba Rao has been given the additional charge of the post of secretary, Disinvestment, until further orders.
The ACC has also cleared in situ promotion of 30 officers to the rank and pay of secretary and special secretary. They include Pulok Chatterjee, who will now be special secretary in the Prime Minister8217;s Office PMO and Delhi Development Authority vice-chairman Dinesh Rai, who will get the rank and pay of secretary.
Others include Vivek Mehrotra, who will be special secretary and financial adviser, Ministry of Home Affairs; K Mohandas, special secretary, Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance; Vijai Sharma, special secretary, Cabinet Secretariat; Raghu Menon, special secretary and financial adviser, Ministry of Civil Aviation; U S Bhatia, Ambassador and permanent representative of India, World Trade Organisation, Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry in the rank and pay of secretary; Sudhir Nath, director Enforcement, Enforcement Directorate, Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance in the rank and pay of secretary and A N P Sinha as principal adviser, Planning Commission, in the rank and pay of secretary.