• By Nidhi Giri
  • Wed, 31 Jul 2024 11:05 AM (IST)
  • Source:JND

New UPSC Chairperson: Preeti Sudan, a 1983 batch IAS officer will be the new Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Chairperson, with effect from August 1, 2024 under Article 316 A of the Constitution, a government order said. Her appointment is set to come amid the ongoing controversy over probationary IAS officer Puja Khedekar's alleged falsification of submitted records. Preeti Sudan is currently a member of the Commission. She will take over from Manoj Soni who resigned a few days ago due to "personal reasons".

New UPSC Chairperson: Who Is Preeti Sudan?

Sudan is an Andhra Pradesh cadre officer and has also served as Secretary, Department of Food & Public Distribution besides in the ministries of Women & Child Development and Defence.

She is known for steering the flagship ‘Beti Bachao’, ‘Beti Padhao’ and ‘Ayushman Bharat’ missions besides the Legislation on National Medical Commission, Allied Health Professionals Commission & ban on E-cigarettes.-OPB

Preeti Sudan has also served as Chair of COP-8 of Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and as member of WHO's Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response.

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Puja Khedkar Row

Puja Khedkar, 32, who started her probationary training at the Pune Collectorate in June 2024, is under scrutiny for allegedly misusing quotas under Other Backward Classes (OBC) and Persons With Benchmark Disabilities (PwBD) to gain an unfair advantage in the civil services examination.

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Days after the Delhi Police filed a case against her for allegedly falsifying her identity to exceed permissible attempts in the civil services examination, Khedkar has applied for anticipatory bail in a Delhi court.