Lavasa may be next defence secy

Adhia could take over as finance secy

Ashok Lavasa, the government's finance secretary, could be the next defence secretary, after incumbent G Mohan Kumar finishes his tenure this month. This, coupled with economic affairs secretary Shaktikanta Das' retirement, again in late May, will trigger a bureaucratic reshuffle and could lead to Hasmukh Adhia, revenue secretary, becoming the finance secretary, this newspaper has learnt.

Lavasa, a 1980 batch Indian Administrative Service Officer, has been expenditure secretary since April 2016. He was officially named finance secretary (the term given to the seniormost of secretaries handling the economy) two months later. Senior officials said there have been discussions in the highest