Vote for continuity: Principal secy PK Mishra, NSA Doval reappointed

The two have become the longest-serving advisers to the prime minister

Ajit Doval has been reappointed the National Security Advisor (NSA) and PK Mishra the Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, the government said on Thursday, in a resounding vote for continuity under Narendra Modi’s third term as the Prime Minister.

Doval is a former Indian Police Service (IPS) officer of the 1968 batch and retired director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) in 2005. He will continue to handle national security, military affairs, and intelligence. He was appointed the NSA after Modi was sworn in as the Prime Minister in May 2014 and then reappointed in 2019.

Mishra is a former Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 1972 batch and retired as the Union Agriculture Secretary.

Associated with the PMO (Prime Minister’s Office) in the past decade, Mishra will continue to take care of administrative matters.

They will become the longest-serving advisors to the Prime Minister.

Mishra had served with Modi when the latter was the Gujarat chief minister. Doval launched the Vivekananda International Foundation, a public policy think tank, in 2009. 

According to a personnel ministry order issued on Thursday, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet approved the appointment of Doval as the NSA from June 10.

During the term of his office, Doval will be assigned the rank of Cabinet Minister in the table of precedence, it said.

He added that the terms and conditions of his appointment will be notified separately.

The committee approved the appointment of Mishra also with effect from June 10. His appointment will be co-terminus with the term of the PM or until further orders, whichever is earlier, it said.

Doval is the PM’s interlocutor in the neighbourhood and with the P5 countries – the US, China, France, Russia, and the United Kingdom. 

As a spymaster, he has experience of having served in Pakistan. He was the PM’s point person during the Chinese army’s aggression in the Doklam plateau in 2017 and in East Ladakh in 2020. He is also New Delhi’s special representative for resolving India’s boundary dispute with China.

He also has experience in dealing with the militancy in Jammu and Kashmir. Amit Khare, a 1985 batch IAS, and Tarun Kapoor of the 1987 batch have also been retained as advisors to the PM for two years.