Senior IAS Officer Tuhin Kanta Pandey Appointed as the New Finance Secretary

Senior bureaucrat Tuhin Kanta Pandey was on Saturday designated as the new finance secretary, according to an official order.

Pandey, a 1987-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of Odisha cadre, is currently the secretary of the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM).

"The Appointments of Committee of the cabinet has approved designating Shri Tuhin Kanta Pandey, IAS, Secretary, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management, Ministry of Finance as Finance Secretary," the order issued by the personnel ministry read.

The vacancy was created following the appointment of T V Somanathan as the Cabinet secretary last month.

As per the convention, the senior-most secretary in the Union finance ministry is designated as the finance secretary.

Last month, Somanathan had stepped into the role of Cabinet Secretary, taking over from Rajiv Gauba, who retired. A 1987-batch IAS officer from the Tamil Nadu cadre, Somanathan holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Calcutta University and has also completed an executive development course at Harvard Business School.

During his time with the Tamil Nadu government, Somanathan held several prominent positions including managing director of Chennai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. and secretary to the chief minister. He also served as chief commissioner of central excise and service tax.

In 1996, Somanathan joined the World Bank in Washington through the Young Professionals Program, working as a Financial Economist for the East Asia & Pacific region. He later became Manager of the Budget Policy Group and one of the youngest Sector Managers at the Bank. From 2011 to 2015, he held the position of Director at the World Bank. He has authored more than 80 papers and articles on economics, finance and public policy.

(With inputs from PTI)