President appoints Ex Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar as UPSC Chairman
Appointment
6 min read
Indian President Droupadi Murmu on 14th May 2025 has appointed former Defence Secretary Dr. Ajay Kumar as the new Chairperson of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). He will succeed Preeti Sudan who is the second woman to be appointed as the Chairperson of the UPSC after Mrs. R.M.Bathew (Kharbuli)(1992-96).
About Dr Ajay Kumar
Dr Ajay Kumar is a 1985 batch Indian Administrative Service officer of the Kerala cadre. He retired as the Defence Secretary in October 2022.
Dr Ajay Kumar did his B.Tech from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur.
During his tenure as Defence Secretary, the Agniveer scheme was implemented, and the post of Chief of Defence Staff was instituted by the government of India.
Term of Dr Ajay Kumar
- The Chairperson or a member of the UPSC holds office for six years or until they reach the age of 65, whichever is earlier.
- They can resign from their post by submitting their resignation to the President of India.
- The President can remove the Chairperson/member of the UPSC after a report of the Supreme Court which finds them guilty of misbehaviour.
About UPSC
- The first Public Service Commission was set up on October 1, 1926.
- With effect from 1 April 1937, the Public Service Commission was converted into the Federal Public Service Commission.
- After the Indian Constitution was promulgated, the Union Public Service Commission replaced the Federal Public Service Commission.
- The Union Public Service Commission is an Independent constitutional body that was established on 26 January 1950 under the provisions of Article 378(1) of the Constitution.
- The first Chairman of the UPSC was R.N Banerjee.
- The constitution mentions that the UPSC will consist of a chairperson and other members.
- The President of India has the power to decide the number of members of the UPSC.
Functions of the UPSC
The Constitution provides that the central government will consult the Union Public Service Commission on the following;
- Methods of recruitment to central government civil services and for civil posts,
- transfers from one service to another and promotion,
- disciplinary matters related to a central government employee,
- making rules or changing rules related to recruitment for various services and posts under the Government.
It also conducts various exams and interviews for appointment to the services of the Government of India.
It advises the Government on any matter referred to the Commission by the President of India.
List of Former UPSC Chairpersons (From 1926 onwards)
Following is the name of the Chairperson of the UPSC and their tenure since 1926.
|
Serial Number |
Chairman Name |
Tenure |
|
1 |
Sir Ross Barker |
1926- 1932 |
|
2 |
Sir David Petrie |
1932-1936 |
|
3 |
Sir Eyre Gorden |
1937-1942 |
|
4 |
Sir F.W. Robertson |
1942-1947 |
|
5 |
H.K. Kripalani |
1 April 1947-13 January 1949 |
|
6 |
R.N. Banerjee |
14 January 1949-9 May 1955 |
|
7 |
N. Govindarajan |
9 May 1955- 9 December 1955 |
|
8 |
V.S. Hejmadi |
9 December 1955- 9 December 1961 |
|
9 |
B.N. Jha |
11 December 1961 - 22 February 1967 |
|
10 |
K.R. Damle |
18 April 1967-2 March 1971 |
|
11 |
R.C.S. Sarkar |
1 May 1971 - 1 February 1973 |
|
12 |
Dr. A.R. Kidwai |
5 February 1973- 4 February 1979 |
|
13 |
Dr. M.L. Shahare |
16 February 1979- 16 February 1985 |
|
14 |
H.K.L. Capoor |
18 February 1985- 5 March 1990 |
|
15 |
J.P. Gupta |
5 March 1990-2 June 1992 |
|
16 |
R.M. Bathew (Kharbuli) |
22 September 1992- 23 August 1996 |
|
17 |
S.J.S. Chhatwal |
23 August 1996- 30 September 1996 |
|
18 |
J.M. Qureshi |
30 September 1996- 11 December 1998 |
|
19 |
Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Surinder Nath |
11 December 1998- 25 June 2002 |
|
20 |
P.C. Hota |
25 June 2002- 8 September 2003 |
|
21 |
Mata Prasad |
8 September 2003 - 4 January 2005 |
|
22 |
S. R. Hashim |
January 2005 -April 2006 |
|
23 |
D. P. Agrawal |
August 2008 -August 2014 |
|
24 |
Rajni Razdan |
August 2014- November 2014 |
|
25 |
Deepak Gupta |
November 2014 - September 2016 |
|
26 |
Alka Sirohi |
21 September 2016- 3 January 2017 |
|
27 |
David R. Syiemlieh |
January 4, 2017 |
|
28 |
Vinay Mittal |
22 January 2018- 19 June 2018 |
|
29 |
Arvind Saxena |
20 June 2018 -6 August 2020 |
|
30 |
Pradeep Kumar Joshi |
7 August 2020-4 April 2022 |
|
31 |
Dr. Manoj Soni |
5 April 2022- July 2024 |
|
32 |
Preeti Sudan |
1 August 2024- April 2025 |
|
33 |
Dr Ajay Kumar |
