Centre Extends Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri's Tenure by One Year

The Centre has extended the tenure of Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri by one year, according to a government order issued on Wednesday.

Misri, a 1989-batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer, assumed charge as India's Foreign Secretary on July 15, 2024. The extension will allow him to continue in the country's top diplomatic post for another year.

A career diplomat with more than three decades of experience, Misri has held several key assignments in the Ministry of External Affairs, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), and Indian missions across Europe, Africa, Asia and North America.

In New Delhi, he has served on the Pakistan desk at the Ministry of External Affairs and worked on the staff of former foreign ministers I. K. Gujral and Pranab Mukherjee. He also served as Joint Secretary in the PMO and was Private Secretary to former prime ministers I. K. Gujral, Manmohan Singh and Narendra Modi.

His overseas postings include Brussels, Tunis, Islamabad and Washington, D.C. He has also served as Deputy High Commissioner to Sri Lanka and Consul General in Munich.

Misri was appointed Ambassador to Spain in 2014, Ambassador to Myanmar in 2016, and Ambassador to China from January 2019 to December 2021. Before taking over as Foreign Secretary, he served as Deputy National Security Adviser (Strategic Affairs) from January 2022 to June 2024.

Born in Srinagar, Misri studied at Burn Hall School and DAV School in Srinagar, Carmel Convent School in Udhampur, and later completed his schooling at the Scindia School in Gwalior. He holds a bachelor's degree in History from Hindu College and an MBA from XLRI.

Before joining the civil services, Misri worked in the private sector in advertising and advertising film-making. He is also a Fellow of the Aspen Institute's India Leadership Initiative, now known as the Kamalnayan Bajaj Fellowship.

He is married to Dolly Misri and the couple have two children.