Union Home Secretary Bhalla gets one more year in service, his third extension

New Delhi, Aug 19: Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla was on Friday given one-year extension in service till August 22, 2023, a Personnel Ministry order said. This is his third extension in the post. Bhalla, a 1984-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Assam-Meghalaya cadre, was appointed as the Home Secretary in August 2019.

He was to retire in November 2020 after attaining 60 years of age. His tenure was first extended on October 17, 2020 till August 22, 2021. Bhalla's tenure was extended by one more year on August 12 last year and was to end on Monday.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved extension in service to Bhalla as Home Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs, for a period of one year beyond August 22, 2022 i.e. up to August 22, 2023, in relaxation of FR 56(d) and Rule 16(1A) of the All India Services (Death-cum-Retirement Benefits) Rules, 1958, it said.

The rules have provisions related to extension in service of such officers beyond the age of 60 years of superannuation. The Fundamental Rules or FR 56 (d) reads "No government servant shall be granted extension in service beyond the age of retirement of sixty years".

It, however, allows the central government to give extension in service to the Defence Secretary, Foreign Secretary, Home Secretary, Director of Intelligence Bureau and the Secretary of Research and Analysis Wing among others in "public interest" for such "period or periods as it may deem proper on a case-to-case basis for reasons to be recorded in writing".

The Rule 16(1A) of the All India Services (Death-cum-Retirement Benefits) Rules, 1958 has similar provision.