Vikram Misri appointed new Deputy NSA - a seasoned diplomat and an expert on India-China matters

New Delhi: Vikram Misri, who served as envoy in China amid the border dispute, has been appointed as Deputy National Security Advisor in the National Security Council secretariat.

Who is Vikram Misri?

 

Misri is a 1989 batch Indian Foreign Service officer. He is a seasoned diplomat and an expert on India-China matters. In his capacity as the new Deputy NSA, he will now report to National Security Adviser Ajit Doval.

Past assignments of Vikram Misri

 

Vikram has served in various capacities at the headquarters of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) as well as in the Prime Minister's Office. Misri has also served in various Indian Missions in Europe, Africa, Asia and North America. At present, Rajinder Khanna, Pankaj Saran and Dattatray Padsalgikar are serving as deputy NSAs.

He was the Private Secretary to former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh from 2012 to 2014 and continued in the post when Narendra Modi took charge in 2014. Misri also served as Private Secretary to PM Modi from May to July 2014. In 1997, he was the Private Secretary to then Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral.

Role in India-China border talks after Galwan clashes

 

Misri was a part of several talks held with China after the troops of both countries violently clashed in the Galwan Valley in June 2020, resulting in the first casualties from skirmishes in the region in four decades.

Srinagar-born Vikram Misri attended the Scindia School before graduating from Delhi's Hindu College. He also holds an MBA degree. Before joining the civil services, he had worked in advertising and ad film-making for three years.

Who succeeds Vikram Misri?

 

Pradeep Kumar Rawat, a 1990 batch IFS officer, has succeeded Misri as Ambassador to China earlier this month. The appointment of Rawat, who was serving as the Indian envoy to the Netherlands before being given this sensitive post, comes in the midst of the lingering eastern Ladakh border standoff.

For Rawat, who speaks fluent Mandarin and had earlier served in Hong Kong and Beijing, resolving the dispute that India and China have been engaged in for the last 20 months, will be the top priority.

The last Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC) meeting took place in November this year.

After the meeting, both the countries agreed on the need to find an early resolution to the remaining disputes along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh, while fully abiding by bilateral agreements and protocols so as to restore peace and tranquillity.

"The two sides also agreed that both sides should, in the interim, also continue to ensure a stable ground situation and avoid any untoward incident," the External Affairs Ministry had said. In the meantime, both countries have made enhanced deployment even during winters to thwart any threat.

Indian troops are deployed at a height of around 17,000 feet along the borders and all logistics are in place. The force is ready to sustain the enhanced troop deployment in the harsh winter at friction points where temperatures will soon start dipping beyond minus 20 degrees.

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