R. Venkataramani gets two-year extension as Attorney General of India

A notification issued by the Department of Legal Affairs under the Ministry of Law and Justice has reappointed Mr. R. Venkataramani as Attorney General of India for an additional period of two years from October 1, 2025.

• The President has reappointed R. Venkataramani as Attorney General of India for a two-year term.
• A notification issued by the Department of Legal Affairs under the Ministry of Law and Justice stated, "The President has reappointed Senior Advocate Mr. R. Venkataramani as Attorney General of India for an additional period of two years from October 1, 2025."

About R. Venkataramani

• Venkataramani, who considers Professor N.R. Madhava Menon his "guru," enrolled as a lawyer in the Tamil Nadu Bar Council in 1977 and worked with experienced lawyer P.P. Rao in the Supreme Court in 1979.
• He started his independent practice in the Supreme Court in 1982 and was designated as a Senior Advocate by the Supreme Court in 1997. He was appointed as a member of the Law Commission of India in 2010 and was again appointed for another term in 2013.
• He was also a co-selected member of the expert group constituted by the Ministry of Minority Affairs in 2007, aimed at examining and determining the structure and functions of an "Equal Opportunity Commission."
• Venkataramani has argued against the right to wear hijab in educational institutions both in the Karnataka High Court as well as in the Supreme Court.
• Since his appointment as Court Receiver on July 23, 2019, he has also been playing a leading role in the execution of the Amrapali Housing Project.
• As the top law officer representing India, he represented the country before the United Nations Human Rights Committee in 2024 and at the G20 Prosecutors’ General Assembly in October 2024.
• An avid reader and academic, he published a collection of his poems last year titled "Roses Without Thorns."

About Attorney General of India

• Qualification (Article 76): Must be qualified to be appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court.
• Functions: To advise the Government of India on legal matters, to perform legal duties assigned by the President, and to discharge functions conferred by the Constitution or any law.
• Right of audience: Can appear and be heard in all courts across India.
• Tenure: Holds office during the pleasure of the President and remuneration is determined by the President.
• Parliamentary rights (Article 88): Has the right to speak and participate in proceedings of either House, but cannot vote.

Botanical Survey of India - Dr. Kanad Das

• Dr. Kanad Das assumed charge as the 13th Director of the Botanical Survey of India (BSI) on September 25, 2025, becoming the first mycologist to lead this prestigious institution.
• The BSI, under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), has played an important role in documenting and conserving India’s plant biodiversity since its establishment in 1890.
• Dr. Das’s appointment marks an important shift towards recognizing the importance of fungal biodiversity, an often overlooked but vital part of India’s ecosystem.
• Dr. Kanad Das is internationally renowned for his expertise in fungal taxonomy, with more than 165 new species of wild mushrooms and two new genera discovered in his name.
• His academic portfolio includes 170 research papers in prestigious journals such as Fungal Diversity, Mycosphere, Nature Scientific Reports, and IMA Fungus, as well as eight books on wild mushrooms.