Road Transport and Highways Secretary Aramane Giridhar was on Wednesday named the new Defence Secretary and Rural Development Secretary Nagendra Nath Sinha the new Steel Secretary, as part of a top-level bureaucratic reshuffle involving 16 secretaries.

Giridhar, a 1988 batch IAS officer of the Andhra Pradesh cadre, has been appointed as an Officer on Special Duty in the Department of Defence. He will take over as Defence Secretary after the retirement of Ajay Kumar on October 31, 2022, a Personnel Ministry order said.

Alka Upadhyaya, chairperson of the National Highways Authority of India, will be the new Road and Transport Secretary in place of Giridhar.

Sinha has been appointed as the OSD in the Ministry of Steel with effect from December 1, 2022.

He will take over as Secretary in the Ministry of Steel, after the retirement of Sanjay Kumar Singh on December 31, 2022. Shailesh Kumar Singh, Additional Secretary and Development Commissioner in the MSME Ministry, will be the new Rural Development Secretary in place of Sinha from December 1. Singh has been appointed as the OSD in the Department of Rural Development, Ministry of Rural Development, the order said.

Financial Services Secretary Sanjay Malhotra will be the new Revenue Secretary. He has been appointed as an OSD in the Department of Revenue. The officer will take over as the Revenue Secretary after Tarun Bajaj completes his term on November 30, 2022.

Vivek Joshi, Registrar General of India and Census Commissioner, MHA, will be the new Secretary, Department of Financial Services in place of Malhotra. Mritunjay Kumar Narayan, Additional Secretary in the Home Ministry, will be the new Registrar General of India and Census Commissioner in place of Joshi.

Amrit Lal Meena, who is currently Special Secretary (Logistics), Department for Promotion of Industry & Internal Trade, will be the new Coal Secretary. Meena, who has been appointed as the OSD in the Coal Ministry, will take over as the Secretary after the retirement of Anil Kumar Jain on October 31.

Sudhansh Pant, a 1991 batch IAS officer of the Rajasthan cadre, has been named as Secretary in the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways. Pant, who has been appointed as the OAS in the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, will take over as Secretary after incumbent Sanjeev Ranjan superannuates on January 31, 2023.

Kamran Rizvi, Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs, will be the Heavy Industries Secretary. Rizvi is appointed as the OSD in the Ministry of Heavy Industries and he will take over as the secretary after Arun Goel superannuates from the post on December 31.

Rachna Shah, Additional Secretary in the Department of Commerce, has been named as the new Textiles Secretary.

Shah, who has been appointed as the OSD in the Ministry of Textiles, will take over as the secretary after incumbent Upendra Prasad Singh retires this month-end. Bhupinder Singh Bhalla, who is currently chairperson of the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC), will be the New and Renewable Energy Secretary. Bhalla, who has been appointed as the OSD in the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, will take over as the secretary after incumbent Indu Shekhar Chaturvedi completes his term this month-end.

Youth Affairs Secretary Sanjay Kumar will be the new Secretary of the Department of School Education & Literacy. He will take over the new position after the retirement of incumbent Anita Karwal on November 30.

Meeta R Lochan, Member Secretary in the National Commission for Women, will be the new Youth Affairs Secretary. Sanjeev Chopra, a 1990 batch IAS officer of the Odisha cadre, has been named as Secretary of the Department of Food and Public Distribution.

He will replace Sudhanshu Pandey, who retires this month-end. Manoj Govil, a 1991 batch IAS officer of Madhya Pradesh cadre, has been appointed Secretary in  Ministry of Corporate Affairs.