Both the appointments are co-terminus with the term of the Prime Minister or until further orders, whichever is earlier. Sinha was functioning as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the PMO. Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) approved the appointment of both the officers with effect from September 11, 2019 (Wednesday).
The two big changes come after the exit of Nripendra Misra from the PMO. Misra was one of the first bureaucrats to be appointed to the PMO when Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) took over the Central government in 2014. Misra had resigned as Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister last month.
A Gujarat cadre IAS officer belonging to the 1972 batch, Mishra has also held posts like Secretary Agriculture & Cooperation and Chairman, State Electricity Regulatory Commission. As per the press statement released by the government, he has managed programmes across a number of different sectors, including agriculture, disaster management, infrastructure and power, and regulatory issues.
Mishra has been involved in schemes like the National Agriculture Development Programme and the National Food Security Mission. He was also conferred a prestigious United Nations award for disaster management and disaster risk reduction.
PM Modi also organised a farewell party for the outgoing Principal Secretary at his residence and has described him as a 'precious treasure' for the PMO. PM Modi had announced last month that Mr Misra did not want to continue as Principal Secretary.
"After serving the PMO assiduously and diligently for over five years and making an indelible contribution to India's growth trajectory, Shri Nripendra Misra Ji will be embarking on a new phase of his life. My best wishes to him for his future endeavours," PM Modi wrote on Twitter.