New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Principal Secretary, Nripendra Misra, has expressed his intention to be relieved of his duties, the government said on Friday, while the PM has requested him to continue for two more weeks.
Modi has appointed PK Sinha, who superannuated as cabinet secretary on Friday, as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the PMO, principal government spokesperson Sitanshu Kar said.
Conveying his best wishes to 74-year-old retired bureaucrat for the "new phase" of his life, Modi said,"After serving the PMO assiduously and diligently for over five years and making an indelible contribution to India's growth trajectory, Shri Nripendra Misra Ji will be embarking on a new phase of his life. My best wishes to him for his future endeavours."
After serving the PMO assiduously and diligently for over five years and making an indelible contribution to India’s growth trajectory, Shri Nripendra Misra Ji will be embarking on a new phase of his life. My best wishes to him for his future endeavours.— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 30, 2019
He termed Misra as the most outstanding officer. "When I was new to Delhi in 2014, he taught me a lot and his guidance remains extremely valuable," the PM said in another tweet.
"It has been a privilege to serve country under PM Modi. I am deeply grateful to him for this opportunity. It is now time for me to move on even as I remain devoted to public causes and national interest," Misra has said after he expressed his intention to step down.
Misra’s core team, which included NSA Ajit Doval and Additional Secretary PK Mishra, was retained after Modi returned to power in May this year. Misra has been Modi’s key man in helping him carry out the reform agenda and in introducing policy changes.
Modi had accommodated Misra as the man in-charge of coordinating between the PMO and various ministries when he came to power in 2014. Misra then served as the chairman of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai). The NDA government in 2000 had amended the TRAI Act to bar the chairman from taking up future government assignments. So PM had to push through an ordinance to amend the TRAI act to allow Misra to become his chief leiutenant.
Misra is an Allahabad University graduate who went on to pursue his master's from Harvard University. Misra was a bureaucrat with over 40 years of experience and held several important positions in state and Centre. He has worked with the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and Asian Development Bank. He also served as principal secretary to Kalyan Singh when he was the Uttar Pradesh chief minister.
The 1967-batch IAS officer had been associated with the RSS-linked Vivekanand Foundation before he was appointed in the PMO.
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