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    Former telecom regulator Nripendra Misra appointed principal secretary to Narendra Modi

    Synopsis

    Misra said he was taking charge from Monday but that it was too early for him to speak about his appointment and the key areas he would be focusing on.

    ET Bureau
    NEW DELHI: Former telecom regulator and a reforms champion in recent years, Nripendra Misra has been appointed principal secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Those familiar with Misra’s meticulous working style say the move is a strong signal that the government will forge ahead with its policy change agenda and that tangible results will be expected.

    Misra told ET that he was taking charge from Monday but that it was too early for him to speak about his appointment and the key areas he would be focusing on. Top bureaucrats who have worked with the 1967 batch IAS officer from Uttar Pradesh at the state and Centre believe he will run a tight ship at the PMO as he’s a fiercely independentminded workaholic. “He’s decisive and a hard task-master, a go-getter with an outstanding record and impeccable integrity. This is a move in the right direction

    by the new government,” said an officer of secretary rank who worked with Misra in UP and Delhi. The principal secretary in the PMO acts plays a critical role as the key link between the head of government and the top bureaucrats and is in charge of executing the Prime Minister’s vision and objectives. Officials said Misra’s no-nonsense approach could be considered similar to that of Brajesh Mishra, who was principal secretary in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government.

    Mishra, who died in 2012, drew his power from the implicit trust Vajpayee placed in him and officials expect a similar equation to prevail at the Modi PMO. As TRAI boss when the then telecom minister A Raja handed out telecom licences in 2008 on a first-comefirst-served basis at 2001 prices, Misra had taken on the government for “cherry-picking” the regulator’s recommendations to allow new entrants into the sector. Misra has deposed as a prosecution witness in the special CBI court hearing the case into the 2G scam.

    Former Idea Cellular CEO Sanjeev Aga, who interacted extensively with Misra in those days, remembers him as an officer and a gentleman. “Self-effacing and always courteous in manner, Mr Misra is industrious and a person of abundant character. The PMO will be in a reassuring pair of hands,” Aga said. ‘’He is a very soft spoken person and a very good listener who will listen to you thoroughly but ask you the right questions. A very sharp mind,” says former Bharti Airtel CEO Sanjay Kapoor.


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