Govind Mohan takes charge as Union home secretary

New Delhi, Aug 23 (PTI) Senior IAS officer Govind Mohan on Friday took charge as the Union home secretary following the retirement of incumbent Ajay Kumar Bhalla.

Mohan, a 1989-batch IAS officer of Sikkim cadre, was serving as Union culture secretary before being appointed as Union home secretary last week.

A B.Tech from Banaras Hindu University and PG Diploma from IIM, Ahmedabad, the senior bureaucrat has a wide experience of serving both the Sikkim and the central governments in various capacities.

Mohan is considered to be one of the brilliant officers presently serving in the government and known for his diligence.

He had earlier served the home ministry as additional secretary handling several key divisions.

A seasoned bureaucrat, Mohan was also the government’s key officer during the COVID-19 pandemic and tasked with overseeing implementation of decisions taken for various protocols and ensuring smooth coordination with states.

As Union culture secretary, Mohan has successfully launched two flagship programmes of the Modi government — ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ and ‘Har Ghar Tiranga movement’.

The ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ is an initiative to celebrate and commemorate 75 years of Independence of the country and the glorious history of its people, culture and achievements.

Hosting of the national flag in every home, ‘Tiranga Yatras’, ‘Tiranga’ rallies and ‘Tiranga’ runs are key initiatives under the ‘Har Ghar Tiranga movement’.

After the launch of the ‘Har Ghar Tiranga movement’, job opportunities were created for thousands of women associated with self-help groups (SHGs), which have increasingly taken over flag production to meet the massive demand, officials said.