AI chief Pradeep Singh Kharola appointed Civil Aviation Ministry Secretary

February 8, 2019: Air India chief Pradeep Singh Kharola has been appointed Civil Aviation secretary. Kharola has been roped in place of Rajiv Nayan Choubey, who superannuated on January 31. The move is part of a minor top-level bureaucratic reshuffle.

Choubey would be joining the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) that conducts civil services examination to select officers of Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and Indian Police Service (IPS) among others.

Kharola, an Indian Administrative Services officer of Karnataka cadre from the 1985 batch, was named chairperson of Air India in November 2017. He presided over a turbulent period for the debt ridden national carrier, which saw a privatisation bid.