Ajay Seth, 1987-batch IAS officer, designated as new finance secretary

A 1987-batch Indian Administrative Service officer from the Karnataka cadre, Seth is also known for his role as the officer in charge of the finance track of the Group of 20 under India's presidency

The appointments committee of the Cabinet approved the appointment of Ajay Seth as finance secretary in the Union Ministry of Finance on Monday. Seth is currently the secretary in the department of economic affairs in the finance ministry and holds additional charge as revenue secretary.

 

A 1987-batch Indian Administrative Service officer from the Karnataka cadre, Seth was the officer-in-charge of the finance track of the Group of 20 (G20) under India’s presidency.

 

Seth is credited with heading initiatives such as India’s first sovereign green bond issuance and the creation of the infrastructure finance secretariat.

 

The role of the finance secretary usually goes to the senior-most officer in the finance ministry. The post had fallen vacant after the previous finance secretary, Tuhin Kanta Pandey, was appointed chairman of the Securities and Exchange Board of India.

 

Before Pandey, the post of finance secretary was held by T V Somanathan, presently the cabinet secretary.

 

Seth holds a bachelor of technology degree from Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee and a master of business administration degree from Ateneo de Manila University.

 

His career spans over three decades and he has significant expertise in public finance, taxation, and social sector administration.

 

The bureaucrat gained recognition for his work in transforming Karnataka’s commercial tax administration, for which he received the Prime Minister’s Award for excellence in Public Administration in 2013.