A quiet doer gets her due

THE FIRST WOMAN TO HOLD THE POST PLAYED A ROLE IN AIR INDIA SALE, ADDED VIGOUR TO ENFORCEMENT

- PRASANTA SAHU

WHEN SHE IS not immersed in work — which is a rarity for the 55-year-old Indian Administrative Service officer — Anuradha Thakur loves reading books on finance and public policy. Both the qualities will stand her in good stead when she begins her journey on June 30 as the secretary of the high-profile department of economic affairs.

Thakur will be the first woman to occupy the seat when incumbent Ajay Seth superannuates. Till then, she will be an Officer on Special Duty in the DEA. The post of DEA secretary, one that was held by stalwarts like former prime minister Manmohan Singh, former deputy chairman of the Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia among others, has been a central one in India's economic policy arena.

Macro-economic management and budget making are among the multiple roles assigned to the department. The DEA is principal anchor of the economic departments spread over multiple ministries; it also virtually presides over the administrative aspects of regulators like the RBI and SEBI, bodies that enjoy a great degree of autonomy.

Thakur, who her colleagues describe as an officer of composed demeanour, is currently additional secretary at the ministry of corporate affairs (MCA). The Bihar-born officer is a postgraduate in psychology and has done a certificate course on development economics from the London School of Economics.