Anurag Jain IAS appointed as Chief Executive Officer – NITI Aayog
Shri Anurag Jain IAS (Madhya Pradesh 1989) presently Chief Secretary – Madhya Pradesh has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer- NITI Aayog for an overall period of two years by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet.
IAS Anurag Jain – A Distinguished Administrator with Deep Experience in Policy, Infrastructure and Governance
Shri Anurag Jain IAS, a 1989-batch officer of the Madhya Pradesh cadre, has built a distinguished administrative career spanning more than three decades, marked by experience in state administration, central government, infrastructure development, urban governance, financial services, energy, information technology and public policy. With a career that has taken him from district administration to the highest levels of state and central governance, he has developed a broad understanding of the challenges associated with public administration and national development.
He has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of NITI Aayog for a two-year tenure beginning 22 July 2026. The appointment places him at the helm of the Government of India’s premier public policy institution, where his extensive experience in policy administration, infrastructure, industry, governance and Centre-State coordination will be particularly relevant. His appointment comes after his tenure as Chief Secretary of Madhya Pradesh, a position he held from October 2024 through August 2026.
Shri Jain holds a B.Tech. degree in Electrical Engineering. His technical education has been complemented by a long and varied administrative career involving sectors that require both policy understanding and institutional management. Over the course of his service, he has worked in the state and central governments, handled major public utilities, served in the Prime Minister’s Office and held senior responsibilities in infrastructure and industrial policy.
Before his elevation to the top administrative position in Madhya Pradesh, Shri Jain served as Secretary in the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways from April 2023 to September 2024. The assignment placed him in a crucial sector involving national highways, transport infrastructure and major connectivity initiatives. His experience in infrastructure administration at the Union level added to his understanding of the scale and complexity of national development programmes.
Prior to this, he served as Secretary in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade from September 2021 to April 2023. The department plays an important role in promoting industrial development, improving the business environment and supporting investment and enterprise. The assignment gave Shri Jain significant exposure to the policy framework governing industry and commerce.
Between May 2020 and September 2021, he served as Vice Chairman of the Delhi Development Authority. The position involved responsibilities in urban development and the functioning of a major development authority in the national capital. His tenure in urban administration further broadened his experience in planning, development and institutional coordination.
A major phase of Shri Jain’s central government career was his tenure as Joint Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office from January 2015 to June 2018. The assignment provided him with exposure to the functioning of the highest levels of government and to the coordination of important policy and administrative matters. His experience in the PMO was preceded by a tenure as Joint Secretary in the Department of Financial Services from June 2011 to December 2014, where he worked in the banking and financial services sector.
His central deputation followed several important assignments in Madhya Pradesh. From June 2007 to June 2011, Shri Jain served as Secretary in the Information Technology Department of the state government. He also served as Secretary to the Chief Minister during the period, handling responsibilities in the Chief Minister’s Secretariat. These assignments gave him experience in information technology administration, governance systems and the functioning of the highest levels of state government.
Earlier, he held important responsibilities in the health and energy sectors. He served as Commissioner in the Health Department and also as Commissioner and Director in the same department. Before that, he served as Executive Director in the Energy Department and Managing Director of the Madhya Pradesh Poorva Kshetra Vidyut Vitran Company Limited at Jabalpur. His experience in the power sector provided exposure to the management of electricity distribution and public utility administration.
Shri Jain also has extensive experience in district and divisional administration. He served as Commissioner in Bhopal and as District Collector in Bhopal. The assignment gave him direct experience in district administration, land revenue management and the coordination of development and public services in one of the state’s most important urban centres.
Earlier, he served as District Collector in another assignment, followed by responsibilities as Executive Director in rural development and District Collector of Mandla. His work in rural development and district administration added a grassroots dimension to his administrative experience.
At the beginning of his career, Shri Jain served as Chief Executive Officer in Durg, Project Officer and Additional Collector. He also served as Sub-Divisional Magistrate. These early field assignments provided the foundation for his later responsibilities and gave him experience in revenue administration, sub-divisional governance, development administration and district-level public service delivery.
The breadth of Shri Jain’s career is reflected in the range of sectors in which he has worked. His experience includes general administration, infrastructure, industry, finance, banking, information technology, health, energy, urban development and rural development. Such a wide administrative exposure has enabled him to view governance from multiple perspectives, combining field experience with policy formulation and institutional management.
His professional development has also included a range of mid-career and in-service training programmes. In 2018, he participated in the 12th Round of the Mid Career Training Programme for IAS officers. He also attended junior- and middle-level training programmes at the Dr. Raghunanadan Singh Tolia Uttarakhand Academy of Administration and the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, Mussoorie.
In addition, he underwent training in negotiating strategies and public-private partnerships at the Indian Institute of Management, Bengaluru. His training exposure also included programmes at the Administrative Training Institute, Nainital, and the Institute of Rural Management Anand. He pursued a Master’s degree in Public Administration at Syracuse University in the United States, adding an international dimension to his understanding of public administration.
Shri Jain’s administrative career has also included responsibilities involving major infrastructure and development institutions. His experience in the Delhi Development Authority, the power sector and the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has given him exposure to large-scale projects and institutions that operate at the intersection of public policy, infrastructure and economic development.
As Chief Secretary of Madhya Pradesh, he served as the senior-most civil servant of the state and was responsible for coordinating the functioning of the state administration across a wide range of departments. His tenure brought together his experience in state administration, central government, infrastructure and policy.
His appointment as CEO of NITI Aayog represents the culmination of a career that has consistently combined field administration with policy-oriented responsibilities. NITI Aayog’s work involves strategic policy thinking, development planning, monitoring and evaluation, and cooperation between the Centre and the States. The institution’s role requires an understanding of both broad national priorities and the practical challenges faced by governments in implementing development programmes.
In this context, Shri Jain brings to the position a particularly broad administrative experience. His career has taken him from the grassroots of district administration to the Prime Minister’s Office and senior Union ministries. He has worked in infrastructure, industry, financial services, technology, energy and urban development, while also serving in rural and district administration.
His progression through these assignments reflects a career built on administrative versatility and sustained exposure to complex governance responsibilities. The combination of technical education, extensive field experience and senior-level policy exposure gives Shri Anurag Jain IAS a wide perspective on the relationship between policy formulation, institutional capacity and implementation.
As he assumes responsibility as Chief Executive Officer of NITI Aayog, his experience across the state and central governments is likely to be particularly relevant to the institution’s role in shaping development priorities and strengthening coordination between different levels of government. His career reflects the evolution of an administrator who has worked across sectors and institutions, steadily building the experience required to handle responsibilities of increasing complexity.
Shri Anurag Jain’s administrative journey, spanning district governance, state leadership, central policy-making and major infrastructure institutions, represents a broad and varied public service career. His new assignment at NITI Aayog places that experience within a national policy framework, bringing together the different strands of his career in administration, infrastructure, industry and governance.
Indian Bureaucracy News wishes Shri Anurag Jain the very best.