The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved a major top-level reshuffle across ministries, appointing Amit Agrawal as the new Secretary of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT). Agrawal will succeed Neeraj Mittal, who has been moved to the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG).
Agrawal, a 1993-batch IAS officer from the Chhattisgarh cadre, has been serving as Secretary in the Department of Pharmaceuticals since December 2024. He will now take charge of the telecom ministry at a time when the sector is advancing its indigenous technology initiatives and preparing for the next phase of digital infrastructure expansion.
Mittal, who assumed charge as Telecom Secretary in September 2023, has been appointed Secretary at MoPNG. During his tenure, he oversaw progress on India’s homegrown telecom technology stack and the large-scale rollout of nearly one lakh 4G sites by BSNL. He also served as Chair of the Digital Communications Commission.
The ACC approved several other senior-level transfers. Manoj Joshi, Secretary in the Department of Land Resources, will replace Agrawal as Secretary in the Department of Pharmaceuticals. Sunil Paliwal, currently Chairperson of the Chennai Port Trust, has been elevated to Chairman of the Inland Waterways Authority of India in the rank of Secretary.
Within the Prime Minister’s Office, Special Secretary Atish Chandra has been appointed Officer on Special Duty in the Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare. The Tourism Ministry will also see a change, with Secretary V Vidyavathi shifting to head the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities. Karnataka cadre officer S Krishna will take over as the new Tourism Secretary.
Mittal’s predecessor at MoPNG, Pankaj Jain, has been moved as Member Secretary of the Eighth Central Pay Commission. Jain was nominated to the position last week, ahead of his scheduled superannuation on December 31, 2025.
