MUMBAI: He’s back at a post he held just about two years back. Amit Khare, the higher education secretary in the HRD ministry and schools, has been hoicked into the position of secretary, ministry of information & broadcasting (I&B). He replaces Ravi Mittal who has been in the hotseat since December 2019.

Khare had been appointed to the secretary’s post for the first time on 31 May 2018. It was in December last year, that Mittal got the top charge of MIB during a reshuffle. Now, Mittal has been transferred  as secretary, department of sports.

Khare is a 1985 batch Indian Administrative Service officer .Considered an upright civil servant, he is credited for unearthing the multi-million dollar fodder scam two decades ago in Bihar for which some powerful politicians, including former Bihar chief minister Lalu Yadav, and senior officials have been handed jail sentences of varied time periods.

Khare comes into the I&B ministry at a crucial time when the government is battling hard to stem the spread of the dreaded novel coronavirus SARS-COV2 which has already claimed more than 800 lives and afflicted more than 26,000 Indians. Khare will have an important role to play especially considering that the economic trials and tribulations the TV broadcasting, and advertising and media sectors are facing courtesy the government enforced lockdown nationally for the past month or so.  Khare has been relieved of his secretary schools portfolo, while continuing to hold the higher education one.

During a career span of more than 35 years, Khare has held various field postings and has worked from grassroots to the higher levels of governance in both state and central governments.  Prior to being additional chief secretary, Jharkhand,  Khare served as principal secretary, finance & planning department, Jharkhand. He has served as member secretary in the department of pharmaceuticals, ministry of chemicals & fertilizers, and joint secretary to the in the department of higher education, ministry of human resource development.