Who is Nidhi Tewari, new Private Secretary to the PM

Nidhi Tewari, a 2014 batch Indian Foreign Service officer, has been appointed as private secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet approved the move today.

Tewari hails from Varanasi and joined the PMO in November 2022 as under secretary. Since January 2023, she has been serving in the PMO as deputy secretary.

Previously, Tewari was posted in the Ministry of External Affairs Department, where she worked in the disarmament and international security affairs division, which reports directly to National Security Adviser Ajit Doval.

The ACC order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training states, "The ACC has approved the appointment of Nidhi Tewari, IFS 2014, currently serving as deputy secretary in the Prime Minister's Office, as private secretary to the PM in Level 12 of the pay matrix with immediate effect on a co-terminus basis or until further orders, whichever is earlier."

Prior to this, the PM had two private secretaries: Hardik Satishchandra Shah and Vivek Kumar.

Last week, Pawan Yadav, former Deputy Commissioner of Manipur's strife-hit Churachandpur district, was appointed private secretary to Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

These two major appointments in the highest echelons of power in the country signal a transition for the third term of the Modi government, in which the PM has promised "greater reforms to make India a $5 trillion economy by 2027."