A joke often heard in the corridors of power is that files had to travel from 바카라Pillai to Pillai바카라 in the UPA government and now things get settled much faster바카라between Misra and Mishra. There may not have been too many 바카라Pillais바카라 in Manmohan Singh바카라s government, but there was surely a predominance of Malayali officers, including many from the Kerala cadre. And Misra and Mishra, or 바카라Bade바카라 Misra and 바카라Chhote바카라 Mishra, are PM Narendra Modi바카라s principal secretary Nripendra Misra and additional principal secretary P.K. Mishra. Along with national security adviser Ajit Doval, they form the fulcrum of Modi바카라s PMO, and all three have been given the status of cabinet ministers, making them senior to the MoS in the PMO, Jitendra Singh, in the table of precedence. Earlier, when their position was equivalent to that of an MoS, protocol allowed a cabinet minister to call Mishra to his office to discuss matters of transfers, postings and appointments. Not anymore.
바카라Power was centralised in the PMO even during Modi바카라s first term, but this PMO will wield even more power as cabinet rank gives these bureaucrats more authority,바카라 says a senior IAS officer. 바카라The PM has enough confidence in them to give them the authority to dictate terms by enhancing their status in the hierarchy.바카라 According to this officer, this was also necessitated after the PM바카라s trusted diplomat S. Jaishankar, a 1977 batch IFS officer, was made external affairs minister. 바카라The three PMO officers are senior to him in the civil services and the PM wanted to avoid a situation where they had to report to their junior,바카라 he explains.
A former bureaucrat says Modi, since his days as Gujarat CM, has always believed in a more centralised, close-knit bureaucracy he can bank on to deliver results. 바카라For his first term, Modi could say he had to deal with the mess left behind by the UPA, but no longer. The next five years have to be bigger than the previous five in terms of outcomes,바카라 he adds.
The task of the government is cut out: build on and expand the PM바카라s pet projects and social schemes such as Ujjwala, Awas Yojana and Ayushman Bharat; turnaround the economy with more jobs, double farm incomes, and reforms for ease of business; and continue with 바카라offensive defence바카라 as foreign policy vis-à-vis the neighbourhood. The playbook heavily relies on bureaucracy to deliver results, and the PM has his trusted team of bureaucrats. 바카라As the first sitting CM to become PM, Modiji brought many of his bureaucrats from Gujarat,바카라 says a Gujarat BJP leader. 바카라He preferred those who understood his way of functioning and his expectations. The familiarity has made him continue with many of them.바카라
Mishra was Modi바카라s principal secretary in the CM바카라s office. As was Girish Chandra Murmu, who is now secretary in the department of expenditure, and is part of Modi바카라s trusted close-knit team working on the crucial budget. Others in the team include finance secretary Subhash Chandra Garg, revenue secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey and department of investment and public asset management (DIPAM) secretary Atanu Chakraborty, also from the Gujarat cadre.
The previous finance secretary Hasmukh Adhia, one of the few who were aware of Modi바카라s demonetisation decision, was also from the Gujarat cadre and has been appointed chairman of Bank of Baroda after retirement. Arvind Kumar Sharma, once known as the Vibrant Gujarat man for his role in Modi바카라s signature campaign to attract investment, is another powerful Gujarat-cadre officer in the PMO. Also known as AK, he has worked with Modi since 2001 and, as additional secretary in charge of infrastructure, now handles Pragati, the PM바카라s monthly interaction with state chief secretaries to review the progress of centre-state projects. Sharma바카라s private secretary Rajeev Topno is also a Gujarat officer.
Modi depends on bureaucracy as much as he disdains it. On moving to Delhi, claim BJP leaders, Modi was wary of the 바카라Lutyens-type바카라 arrogant bureaucrats, who he believed were more interested in networking and throwing their weight around. 바카라He still holds that view to a large extent and, hence, prefers a certain type of officers바카라 바카라doers바카라 who are loyal, unquestioning and honest, but shun publicity to stay under the radar. Modi keeps an eye on the ministers through those babus who win his trust,바카라 says the Gujarat BJP leader.
There is a joke that if someone바카라s name starts doing the rounds for a particular job, he invariably doesn바카라t get it. Not finding enough bureaucrats whom the PM can trust to deliver the results he wants, the government has decided to bring in around 400 domain experts through lateral entry on posts traditionally filled by IAS officers. Former IAS officer K.J. Alphons, who was inducted as MoS for culture and tourism in Modi바카라s first term, believes it is 바카라in a sense a good idea바카라 as it will make bureaucracy more competitive and pose a challenge to IAS officers.
바카라If the government needs experts even after selecting the 100 best from 1.5 million, then there is something flawed about the system,바카라 says Alphons. 바카라Why can바카라t the UPSC devise a system to select 100 officers who can work, who are not arrogant and have a spine? It is a pity that many IAS officers, who have the best job in the world, incredible power and opportunity to work for the people, fritter it away with their attitude. As 1.5 million people take the civil services exam and 100 get through to the IAS, from the moment they cross the gates of the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration in Mussorie for their training, they carry a certain arrogance around them. That needs to change. Modi is creating infrastructure for the poor, which needs a hundred things to be done simultaneously. He needs the vast monitoring system to ensure there are no slippages and things get done.바카라
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Nripendra Misra, 74
Principal secretary to the PM
1967-batch UP-cadre IAS
The PM바카라s troubleshooter, he is on top of contentious issues like Dalit violence, reservations for the economically backward and jobs data. The PMO바카라s pointsman for all ministries, he is responsible for policy decisions. He lays down the roadmap for bureaucrats and keeps up the pressure on timelines of projects.
Ajit Doval, 74
National security adviser
1968-batch Kerala-cadre IPS
He is credited for the muscular approach to national security that also pervades Modi government바카라s foreign policy. The Uri surgical strike across the LoC and the Balakot air attack that found resonance with voters in the run-up to the Lok Sabha elections are a brainchild of Doval. Straddling security, intelligence, defence and diplomacy, Doval is now working on a national security blueprint.
Pramod K. Mishra, 70
Additional principal secretary to the PM
1972-batch Gujarat-cadre IAS
Misra enjoys complete trust of the PM, having served as his principal secretary when Modi was the chief minister of Gujarat. In the PMO, he is in charge of top-level postings and transfers in the government and recently nudged the finance ministry to do a clean-up바카라several senior officers of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs were compulsorily retired.
Subhash C. Garg, 58
Finance secretary
1983-batch Rajasthan- cadre IAS
At a time when the economy needs a booster dose, Modi has put his trust in Garg, considered one of the better number-crunchers. Given the unenviable task of reviving the economy and creating jobs, Garg has to draw a roadmap for reforms to promote ease of doing business and economic growth. He is known to have a good equation with the RBI and SEBI.
Girish Chandra Murmu, 59
Secretary, department of expenditure
1985-batch Gujarat-cadre IAS
Hailing from Sundargarh in Odisha, the low-key but shrewd bureaucrat has been the go-to man for Prime Minister Modi as well as Amit Shah. Murmu has also served as principal secretary in Modi바카라s CMO in Gujarat. Brought to Delhi soon after Modi became the PM in 2014, he was one of the trusted few tasked with reviving the economy.
Shaktikanta Das, 62
RBI governor
1980-batch Tamil Nadu-cadre IAS
As revenue secretary, he earned Modi바카라s trust with his GST push. As RBI governor, he is in tune with the government바카라s expectations on NPAs, the insolvency and bankruptcy code, and domestic investments. With his consultative approach, the RBI and finance ministry are on the same page. Lenders too have been warming up to him as he hears out industry concerns.
Vijay Keshav Gokhale, 60
Foreign secretary
1981-batch IFS officer
Known for functioning under the radar, Gokhale has worked in China as well as Taiwan. His understated but firm negotiating skills impressed Modi and the security establishment.As ambassador to China, he worked on resolving the Doklam stand-off in coordination with Doval and then foreign secretary S. Jaishankar. He now has to prioritise the neighbourhood and reset relations with China.
