Will woman IAS officer become Cabinet Secretary?

New Delhi, Jan 16: The Government of India has seen only four Cabinet Secretaries in 14 years from 2004 to June 2018. B K Chaturvedi, K M Chandrashekhar, Ajit Seth and P K Sinha. Three were Cabinet Secretary for four years while P K Sinha will also complete the fourth year in June 2019.

With one-year extension to PK Sinha, Cabinet Secretary has closed the doors for two batches of IAS officers. IAS officers of 1981 and 1982 batches will retire by June 2019.

Secretary in the PM Office Bhaskar Khulbe may be the dark horse for the post. Khulbe, 1983 batch IAS officer of the West Bengal cadre, is scheduled to retire on March 31,2019.

Defence Secretary Sanjay Mitra,1982 batch IAS officer of West Bengal cadre, may also be considered for the post. Mitra is to retire in May. He was Chief Secretary in West Bengal Government.

If all goes well, Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba will be new Cabinet Secretary. Gauba, 1982 batch Jharkhand cadre IAS officer, will be senior-most IAS officer in the Government of India.

Telecom Secretary Aruna Sundararajan is said to be a strong contender for the post. 1982 batch IAS officer Sundararajan is also next in seniority to Rajiv Gauba.

According to reports, in view of the next Lok Sabha elections, Modi Government may appoint new Cabinet Secretary in March before the imposition of the Code of conduct. In that case present Cabinet Secretary PK Sinha may be given another assignment.