Senior diplomat Pankaj Saran has been appointed as Deputy National Security Advisor, the government said today. Saran is currently India’s Ambassador to Russia.
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved Saran’s appointment as the deputy NSA for a period of two years, on deputation basis initially till the date of his superannuation, i.e., November 30, 2018, then on re-employment on contract basis, an order issued by Personnel Ministry said.
India now has two Deputy NSAs. Saran joins Rajinder Khanna, who is also deputy NSA.
The 1982 batch officer of Indian Foreign Service (IFS) Saran was in November 2015 appointed as the India’s envoy to Russia. He had held various positions in India and abroad including the country’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh. He also served as the joint secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office between 2007 and 2012.
