Centre enacts major bureaucratic reshuffle; Arvind Shrivastava appointed new Revenue Secretary

In a significant bureaucratic reshuffle, the Modi government on Friday (April 18, 2025) announced the appointment of new Secretaries across several key ministries.

The most prominent among them is the appointment of Arvind Shrivastava (IAS:1994:KN) as the new Revenue Secretary. Shrivastava is currently serving as Additional Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

The names of the officers and their posting are as follows;

1. Ms Meeta R Lochan (IAS:1990:MH), Secretary in the Department of Youth Affairs, has been appointed as Secretary, National Commission for Backward Classes. She will replace A Neeraja (IFoS:1990:UP) upon her superannuation on 31.05.2025.
2. K Moses Chahal (IAS:1990:MN), Secretary, Inter State Council Secretariat, Ministry of Home Affairs, has been transferred and appointed as Secretary, Department of Public Enterprises, Ministry of Finance.
3. Manoj Govil (IAS:1991:MP), Secretary in the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance, has been transferred and posted as Secretary (Co-ordination), Cabinet Secretariat. He will replace Vandana Gurnani (IAS:1991:KN) upon her appointment as Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment.
4. Vandana Gurnani (IAS:1991:KN), Secretary (Co-ordination), Cabinet Secretariat, has been transferred and posted as Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment.
5. Ranjit Punhani (IAS:1991:BH), Secretary, Rajya Sabha Secretariat, has been transferred and posted as Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. He will replace Atul Kumar Tiwari (IAS:1990:KN) upon his retirement on June 30, 2025.
6. Ashish Srivatava (IAS:1992:MP), Advisor, Inter State Council Secretariat, Ministry of Home Affairs, has been transferred and posted as Secretary, Inter State Council Secretariat, Ministry of Home Affairs.
7. Vumlunmang Vualnam (IAS:1992:MN), Secretary in the Ministry of Civil Aviation, has been transferred and posted as Secretary, Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance. He will replace Manoj Govil (IAS:1991:MP) upon his Secretary (Co-ordination), Cabinet Secretariat.
8. Nikunja Bihari Dhal (IAS:1993:OR), presently serving in the cadre, has been posted as Secretary, Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs. He will replace Umang Narula (IAS:1989:AGMUT) upon his superannuation on June 30,2025.
9. Rakesh Kumar Verma (IAS:1993:PB), Additional Secretary in the Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Ministry of Jal Shakti, has been transferred and posted as Director General, Indian International Institute of Democracy and Election Management in the rank and pay of Secretary.
10. Anuradha Thakur (IAS:1994:HP), Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, has been transferred and posted as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, in the rank and pay of Secretary. She will replace Ajay Seth (IAS:1987:KN) upon his retirement of June 30, 2025.
11. Rajesh Agrawal (IAS:1994:MN), Additional Secretary, Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, has been appointed as Special Secretary, Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry. He will replace Sunil Barthwal (IAS:1989:BH) upon his retirement on September 30, 2025.
12. Arvind Shrivastava (IAS:1994:KN), Additional Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office, has been transferred and posted as Secretary, Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance.
13. Vivek Aggarwal (IAS:1994:MP), Additional Secretary in the Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance, has been transferred and appointed as Secretary, Ministry of Culture.
14. Santosh Kumar Sarangi (IAS:1994:OR), Director General, Directorate General of Foreign Trade, Ministry of Commerce & Industries, has been transferred and posted as Secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.
15. Pallavi Jain Govil (IAS:1994:MP), Director General of Hydrocarbons, Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas, has been transferred and posted as Secretary, Department of Youth Affairs. She will replace Meeta R Lochan (IAS:1990:MH), who has been appointed as Secretary, National Commission for Backward Classes.
16. Nidhi Chhiber (IAS:1994:CG), Additional Secretary in the NITI Aayog, has been transferred and posted as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the Ministry of Food Processing Industries in the rank and pay of Secretary. She will replace Subrata Gupta (IAS:1990:WB), who is set to retire on May 31, 2025.
17. Samir Kumar Sinha (IAS:1994:CG), Additional Secretary & Director General (Acquisition), Department of Defence, has been appointed as Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation. He will replace Vumlunmang Vualnam (IAS:1992:MN), who has been appointed as Secretary, Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance.
18. Hari Ranjan Rao (IAS:1994:MP), Additional Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office, has been transferred and appointed as Officer on Special Duty (OSD), Department of Sports, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports in the rank and pay of Secretary. He will replace Sujata Chaturvedi (IAS:1989:BH), who is set to retire on June 30, 2025.

In addition, the ACC also approved the in-situ upgradation of two IAS officers to the level of Special Secretary in the pay and rank of Secretary.

1. Rajesh Kumar Sinha (IAS:1994:KL) as Special Secretary in the Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Waterways.
2. Ranjana Chopra (IAS:1994:OR) as Special Secretary & Financial Advisor, Ministry of Culture.