K. M. Chandrasekhar (born 20 February 1948) is a retired Indian

civil servant The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

, who was the 29th Cabinet Secretary of the

Republic of India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

from 2007 to 2011 for a four-year term under which he directly reported to the Prime Minister

Dr. Manmohan Singh Manmohan Singh (; born 26 September 1932) is an Indian politician, economist and statesman who served as the 13th prime minister of India from 2004 to 2014. He is also the third longest-serving prime minister after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indir ...

. He is a 1970 batch

Indian Administrative Service The Indian Administrative Service (IAS) is the administrative arm of the All India Services of Government of India. Considered the premier civil service of India, the IAS is one of the three arms of the All India Services along with the Indian ...

officer from

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

Cadre. In 2023, he was honoured with Kerala Sree Award, third highest civilian award given by the

Government of Kerala Government of Kerala is the subnational government of the Indian state of Kerala. The government is led by a chief minister, who selects all the other ministers. The chief minister and their most senior ministers belong to the supreme decision ...

Early life and education

K. M. Chandrasekhar was born in Kerala to Ittyanath Thangamani from Ittyanath family Villadom, Thrissur and Kesava Menon, who was Chairman of the Railway Service Commission. He is the nephew of I. K. K. Menon, the eminent Malayalam writer who also served as the Secretary to the

Election Commission of India The Election Commission of India (ECI) is a constitutional body. It was established by the Constitution of India to conduct and regulate elections in the country. Article 324 of the Constitution provides that the power of superintendence, di ...

(ECI). After graduating from college, he got an MA in history from the University of Delhi. He then earned his M.A. in Management Studies from the

University of Leeds , mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased , established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds , ...

Career

Chandrasekhar worked in the

from 1970 to 2011. During the last four years of his career, he held the highest position achievable in the Indian civil services, that of Union Cabinet Secretary, reporting directly to Prime Minister

Manmohan Singh Manmohan Singh (; born 26 September 1932) is an Indian politician, economist and statesman who served as the 13th prime minister of India from 2004 to 2014. He is also the third longest-serving prime minister after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indir ...

. After his retirement in 2011, he was offered a position equivalent to

Cabinet Minister A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ‘prime minister’, � ...

in his home State,

, as Vice Chairman of the State Planning Board, which he held for the next five years until 2016. He has been

Revenue Secretary Secretary to the Government of India, often abbreviated as Secretary, GoI, or simply as Secretary, is a post and a rank under the Central Staffing Scheme of the Government of India. The authority for the creation of this post solely rests with ...

in the Ministry of Finance,

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...

, and Finance Secretary in his State Government. In the

Ministry of Commerce A Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry or variations is a ministry that is concerned with a nation's trade, industry and commerce. Notable examples are: List *Algeria: Ministry of Industry and M ...

, he has worked as Chairman of the

Spices Board The Spices Board is the Government of India, Indian government regulatory and export promotion agency for Indian spices headed by a Chairman, rank equivalent to Joint Secretary to Government of India. The board is headquartered in Kochi (India ...

(of which he was founder chairman), as Joint Secretary (Trade Policy Division) in the Ministry and in two diplomatic assignments abroad. He is on the Boards of ten companies, eight of them in the

Tata Group The Tata Group () is an Indian multinational conglomerate headquartered in Mumbai. Established in 1868, it is India's largest conglomerate, with products and services in over 150 countries, and operations in 100 countries across six continent ...

and the others in the health care sector. He has been Chairman of the Federal Bank, President of a medical research institute and hospital under the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India (the Sri Chithra Institute of Medical Sciences and Technology, Trivandrum) and currently chairs, in an elected capacity, an economic think tank, teaching and research institution, the Centre for Development Studies, Trivandrum, affiliated to the

Jawaharlal Nehru University Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) is a public major research university located in New Delhi, India. It was established in 1969 and named after Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first Prime Minister. The university is known for leading faculties and r ...

, New Delhi. He is also Honorary Adviser to an Ayurvedic institution, the Arya Vaidya Sala, Kottakkal. His memoir 'As Good as My Word' is published by Harper Collins India in December 2022 and he is now working on his second book.

Personal life

Chandrasekhar is married to Jaya, who taught English language and literature. They have a daughter.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chandrasekhar, K M Indian diplomats Cabinet Secretaries of India 1948 births Living people Alumni of the University of Leeds St. Stephen's College, Delhi alumni Delhi University alumni Indian Administrative Service officers Kerala Sree Award Winners