Former finance Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg. (File)IAS officer and former Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg has applied for voluntary retirement from service, a day after he was shifted to the Power Ministry, PTI reported.
In a surprise move on Wednesday, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) had appointed Garg as the new Power secretary. Atanu Chakraborty was named the next Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, in place of Garg.
Though it is not clear when Garg submitted his papers for voluntary retirement or if his application will be accepted by the government. He was to retire in October next year, at the age of 60.
Garg has been the key officer in managing the fiscal consolidation roadmap of the Central government and was designated as the Finance Secretary. He also pushed the need for reviewing the Economic Capital Framework of the Reserve Bank of India, with the finance ministry arguing that the RBI share excess capital with the government. This issue generated considerable debate and created frictions in relations between the Finance Ministry and RBI last year, which many saw as the key reason behind the resignation of former RBI Governor Urjit Patel.
The 1983 batch IAS officer of Rajasthan cadre, Garg came to the centre in 2014 and was appointed Executive Director in the World Bank a post he held till he was appointed as DEA Secretary in June 2017. In March 2019, he was elevated to the position of Finance Secretary.
