Odia officers have been doing their home state proud by delivering the goods in high positions at the national level. Chosen purely on the basis of merit, some of them have been assigned important roles after retirement. Latest in this list is retired IAS officer Debasish Panda, who has been appointed chairperson of Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDA). The appointment, approved by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, will initially be for a period of three years from the day he takes charge of office.
A 1987-batch IAS officer of Uttar Pradesh cadre, Panda was secretary, department of financial services, ministry of Finance. The officer, who has a postgraduate degree in Physics and also holds a master’s in Developmental Management along with an M. Phil in environmental sciences, has also undergone foreign training in public administration.
Panda held several key posts in the Uttar Pradesh government and served the Government of India in the past as well, in the capacity of Joint Secretary (Health & FW) and as Deputy Director (Administration) at AIIMS. He was also Additional Secretary in the Department of Financial Services and held dual charge of Resident Commissioner of UP in Delhi as well as Chief Executive Officer of Greater Noida Development Authority.
While Panda’s latest assignment is a matter of pride for all Odias, people of the state have also been watching with great satisfaction the stellar role being played by former IAS officer PK Mishra, who is currently heading the PMO. The 1972-batch Gujarat cadre officer had served as principal secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he was the chief minister of Gujarat. Brought to Delhi when Modi became Prime Minister, Mishra served as additional principal secretary to the PM (a post specially created for him) for five years before he took over as principal secretary to the PM.
Another Odia to have made the state extremely proud is Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Shaktikanta Das. A 1980-batch IAS officer of Tamil Nadu cadre, he is the first governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) from Odisha. He was also a member of the Fifteenth Finance Commission and India’s Sherpa to the G20. During his career as an IAS officer, he served in various capacities for Indian and Tamil Nadu governments, including as Economic Affairs Secretary, Revenue Secretary and Fertilizers Secretary.
Das’s appointment as the head honcho of RBI in 2018 was widely hailed by economic experts. He is credited with having taken some vital decisions that have helped stabilize the economy of the country. Perhaps the most significant of these decisions was the unveiling of liquidity support measures amid rising Covid-19 cases in the country.
Das has been ably assisted in his job by at least two Odias. One of them is Michael Debabrata Patra, a native of Cuttack who did his graduation from the erstwhile Ravenshaw College (now Ravenshaw University) and postgraduation from Utkal University. A career central banker, he has handled several key assignments and played an important role in managing India’s forex crisis in 1991.
With their professional accomplishments, these personalities are inspiring the aspirations of the next generation of Odias in no small measure.
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