Ex J&K governor Girish Chandra Murmu sworn in as India's new CAG

Girish Chandra Murmu has assumed office as the Comptroller and Auditor General of India from August 8, 2020, an official statement said on Saturday.

Earlier in the morning, the former Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor was sworn in as the Comptroller and Auditor General at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Murmu made and subscribed to the oath of office before President Ram Nath Kovind, according to a Rashtrapati Bhavan statement.

A former bureaucrat, Murmu is a 1985-batch IAS officer of Gujarat cadre. His tenure as the new CAG will be up to November 20, 2024.

He succeeds Rajiv Mehrishi, who demitted office on Friday, the office of the CAG said in the statement.

As a constitutional functionary, the CAG is primarily entrusted with the responsibility of auditing the accounts of the central and state governments.

The CAG reports are laid before Parliament and legislatures of the states.

While being administered the oath of office and secrecy at Rastrapati Bhavan this morning, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, outgoing CAG Mehrishi, were among the dignitaries present.

"After the oath ceremony, Murmu came to the CAG office, where he was welcomed by the senior officers of the Indian Audit and Accounts Department," said the official statement from his new office.

Before his appointment as the Lt Governor of union territory J&K, he served as Joint Secretary in the Department of Expenditure, Additional Secretary in the Department of Financial Services and Department of Revenue. Later, he served as Special Secretary in the Department of Expenditure before being appointed as the full-fledged Secretary of the department.

And before his tenure at the Centre, Murmu served on important assignments in Gujarat.

He has wide experience in administrative, economic and infrastructure fields, said the official statement.

Murmu is a post graduate in Political Science from Utkal University. He holds an MBA degree from the University of Birmingham.

He was born on November 21, 1959 in Mayurbhanj district of Odisha. He is married to Smita Murmu. They have a daughter Ruchika and son Ruhaan.