Seasoned bureaucrat and senior Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Govind Mohan assumed the role of new Union home secretary on Friday, succeeding Ajay Kumar Bhalla, whose five-year term at the helm of the sensitive position concluded yesterday on attaining the age of superannuation with extended tenure of service. Mohan, who holds a B.Tech from Banaras Hindu University (BHU) and a PG Diploma from IIM Ahmedabad, was previously serving as the Union culture secretary before his appointment to the top bureaucratic post, next only to the Cabinet Secretary.

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A 1989 batch IAS officer of the Sikkim cadre, Mohan was appointed in the Union home ministry as an Officer on Special Duty on August 14. Highly regarded for his extensive experience and diligence in various roles within both the Sikkim and Central governments, Mohan was moved from the Ministry of Culture, where he was Secretary. He is considered to be one of the brilliant officers presently serving in the government and is known for his diligence. Mohan, who turns 59 next month, replaces 1984-batch IAS officer Ajay Bhalla, who was given a fourth extension in the post last year till August 22, 2024.

Bhalla was appointed home secretary in August 2019. He was to retire in November 2020 after attaining 60 years of age. His tenure was first extended on October 17, 2020, till August 22, 2021. Subsequently, his term was extended for one year each in 2021, 2022 and 2023. Mohan, an electrical engineer from BHU-IIT Varanasi, served as the Union Culture Secretary from October 2021 to August 14, 2024, and has previously had two terms with the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). Originally from Uttar Pradesh, Mohan has been on Central Deputation since August 2017.

He served as a Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs from May to September 2018 and as Additional Secretary from September 2018 to September 2021. Mohan was also among the key bureaucrats under the Central government who played a major role during the COVID-19 pandemic, tasked with overseeing the implementation of health protocol decisions taken under the Disaster Management Act, of 2005, and ensuring swift coordination between states. During his stint in the MHA, Mohan headed the Union Territories (UT) division, which coordinates issues relating to the eight UTs, including service-related issues of the AGMUT cadre of the IAS and IPS, implementation of the Centre's flagship programmes in the UTs and legal issues relating to service and other constitutional matters.

Mohan also had a stint with the Ministry of Finance where he served as joint secretary, the Department of Economic Affairs. During this time, the officer was in charge of proposals relating to foreign investments, formulating a revised gold policy and coordinating the signing of bilateral investment treaties with foreign countries. He was also involved in framing a comprehensive investment framework for India, besides drafting a fintech policy. With the new responsibility, Mohan's immediate challenge will be to work closely with the Election Commission (EC) to ensure smooth and secure Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir.

The EC has announced a three-phase polling process starting September 18 in the Union Territory. Last Wednesday, Mohan's predecessor Bhalla held a meeting with the EC to discuss the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir and force mobilisation. As Union culture secretary, Mohan has successfully launched two flagship programmes of the Modi government-- 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav' and 'Har Ghar Tiranga movement'