Ajay Seth Appointed As New Finance Secretary

The government has appointed Ajay Seth as the new Finance Secretary, according to an official order issued on Monday.

Seth, a 1987 batch IAS officer from the Karnataka cadre, currently serves as the Secretary of the Department of Economic Affairs in the Finance Ministry.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet approved his designation.

As per convention, the senior-most secretary in the Finance Ministry becomes the Finance Secretary.

Earlier this month, Seth also took additional charge as Revenue Secretary.

Seth holds a B Tech in Mechanical Engineering from IIT Roorkee and an MBA from Ateneo de Manila University.

He has over 30 years of experience in public finance, tax policy, foreign investments, and development financing.

His expertise includes budgeting, financial cooperation, and public-private partnerships.

He has worked on several economic reforms.

He received the Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration in 2013 for streamlining Karnataka’s commercial tax administration.

The Finance Secretary’s post became vacant after Tuhin Kanta Pandey was appointed as the Chairman of SEBI.

Pandey played a key role in drafting the Union Budget, which exempted incomes up to ₹12 lakh per year from tax to boost demand and economic growth.

He also contributed to drafting the new Income Tax Bill, which simplifies the Income-tax Act, 1961 by reducing its volume by 50%.

With his appointment, Ajay Seth will oversee economic policies and financial administration.

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