Centre Issues Key Bureaucratic Appointments: Niraj Verma Gets Additional Charge of Parliamentary Affairs; Mrunmai Joshi Moved to Economic Affairs

 The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) on Friday issued a cluster of personnel orders spanning appointments, lateral shifts, tenure extensions and repatriations involving senior officers from the IAS, IPS and IRS services — reflecting the Centre's ongoing calibration of its administrative machinery as the mid-year mark approaches. Senior IAS officer Niraj Verma (1994 batch, AGMUT cadre), currently serving as Secretary in the Department of Justice under the Ministry of Law and Justice, has been entrusted with the additional charge of Secretary in the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs. The arrangement is in effect from June 13 to June 19, 2026, covering the period of leave of incumbent Secretary Nikunja Bihari Dhal (1993 batch, Odisha cadre). The Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs is responsible for coordinating the Union government's legislative business across both Houses of Parliament — a role that demands continuous senior-level engagement, particularly during and around Parliamentary sessions. Verma's entrustment with the dual charge ensures that the ministry's functioning does not experience any administrative gap during Dhal's temporary absence. In a separate order under the Central Staffing Scheme, IAS officer Mrunmai Shashank Joshi (2013 batch, Kerala cadre), who has been serving as Deputy Secretary in the Cabinet Secretariat, has been appointed as Deputy Secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) under the Ministry of Finance on a lateral shift basis. Her tenure in the new role will run until March 21, 2027. The DEA is one of the most consequential divisions of the Finance Ministry, overseeing macroeconomic policy, public investment frameworks, financial sector regulation, and India's engagement with multilateral financial institutions. At the Election Commission of India, the deputation tenure of IPS officer Manoj C (2011 batch, AGMUT cadre), serving as Director, has been curtailed ahead of schedule. No official reasoning has been cited in the order, consistent with standard DoPT practice. The officer is expected to return to his cadre following the curtailment. The Environment Ministry received a signal of administrative continuity with the approval of a two-year extension for Chaudhari Uday Gaurishankar (IAS, 2010 batch, Maharashtra cadre), currently serving as Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, beyond June 23, 2026. The extension comes at a significant moment for the ministry, which is engaged in finalising India's climate adaptation frameworks and managing forest governance amid heightened scrutiny over land use and environmental clearances. Rounding out the set of orders, a senior IRS officer has been repatriated to the parent cadre, completing a broad mid-year round of personnel management across the central deputation roster.