Retd Odisha IAS Officer Saurabh Garg Gets One-Year Extension As Statistics Secretary

New Delhi: The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved a one-year contractual extension for Saurabh Garg, a 1991-batch retired IAS officer of the Odisha cadre, as Secretary of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI).

He will continue to serve in the post till July 31, 2027.

According to an order issued by the Personnel Ministry on July 13, Garg, who superannuated on July 31, 2024, will serve on a contract basis beyond the expiry of his current term at the end of this month. In addition to his primary responsibilities at MoSPI, he will continue discharging the functions of Secretary to the National Statistical Commission (NSC).

Garg was appointed as Secretary of MoSPI on May 30, 2024, after serving as Secretary in the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment. At the time of his initial appointment, the government specified that he would hold the post until his superannuation and thereafter on a contract basis for one year or until further orders. The latest decision provides a further one-year extension.

Extensive Experience in Administration and Policy

Garg holds a Ph.D in International Economics and Development from the Johns Hopkins University, USA, an MBA from IIM, Ahmedabad, where he was awarded a gold medal for academic excellence and a B Tech from IIT Delhi. He was a Chevening Gurukul scholar at the London School of Economics, London.

Before joining the IAS, he worked with the Tata Administrative Service. His career spans over three decades across district, state, and central government levels.

As CEO, Unique Identification Authority of India, he was instrumental in expanding the usage of Aadhaar and strengthening the technology stack of the Aadhaar ecosystem. As Joint Secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs and Department of Expenditure, he led the development of the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF); worked on preparing the framework for digital payments; improving Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy; revamping of the gold sector policies and formulation of the Direct Benefits Transfer programme. He was on a secondment as Adviser at the World Bank, Washington, where he assisted in the discharge of the Board’s oversight responsibilities through in-depth examination of World Bank policies and practices.

He has also served as a member of various Expert Committees/ Working Groups set up by the Ministry of Finance, NITI Aayog, RBI and SEBI and have been a Chairman/Managing Director/Board member of several public sector companies both at the state and central level.

In Odisha, he notably served as Principal Secretary, Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment, where he designed schemes like KALIA, a direct income transfer scheme for farmers and an agricultural policy focusing on the use of technology. He was also the CMD, Grid Corporation and Odisha Power Transmission Company and Commissionercum-Secretary, in the Department of Public Enterprises and Department of Industries. As Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Housing and Urban Development, he spearheaded the development of the Odisha Urban Infrastructure Development Fund (OUIDF).

His spouse, Anu Garg, also a 1991-batch officer, took charge as the Chief Secretary of Odisha on January 1, 2026, making her the first woman to hold the state’s highest bureaucratic office.