New Delhi: Senior IAS officer Deepti Gaur Mukerjee has been appointed Secretary of the Department of Higher Education under the Union Ministry of Education, marking a fresh change at the top of the country’s higher education administration.
The appointment was announced in a late-night bureaucratic reshuffle on August 10 and comes barely three weeks after Rajasthan-cadre IAS officer Naresh Pal Gangwar was appointed to the post. Gangwar’s appointment was subsequently kept in abeyance, paving the way for Mukerjee’s induction.
Who is Deepti Gaur Mukerjee?
A 1993-batch IAS officer of the Madhya Pradesh cadre, Mukerjee has held several senior positions in both the Madhya Pradesh government and the Centre.
She was serving as Secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) before her latest assignment. She took charge of the ministry in August 2024, succeeding Manoj Govil.
During her tenure at the MCA, Mukerjee handled key areas involving corporate governance, insolvency, investor protection and the ease of doing business. She was also appointed Chairperson of the Investor Education and Protection Fund Authority (IEPFA) in her capacity as MCA Secretary.
Before taking charge of the corporate affairs ministry, she briefly served as CEO of the National Health Authority (NHA).
Mukerjee’s academic background includes a Master’s degree in Economics from Jawaharlal Nehru University and an MSc in Public Management and Governance from the London School of Economics, according to published profiles.
Heartiest congratulations to Ms. Deepti Gaur Mukerjee on her appointment as Secretary, Department of Higher Education, @EduMinOfIndia GoI. @EPSIIndia & its member institutions wish her every success in advancing India’s higher education.@ugc_india@AICTE_INDIA#EPSIIndia #EPSI pic.twitter.com/52RA3Bgb5w
— Education Promotion Society for India (@EPSIIndia) August 11, 2026
Higher education at a crucial juncture
Mukerjee takes over the Higher Education Department at a time when the sector is facing intense scrutiny over examinations, institutional governance and the functioning of key educational bodies.
Her new responsibilities will include overseeing the Centre’s higher education policy and administration, including matters concerning universities, higher education institutions and major programmes of the Union government.
The latest move also underscores the rapid pace of changes at the senior bureaucratic level in the Education Ministry. Gangwar had been appointed Higher Education Secretary in July, replacing Vineet Joshi, but that arrangement was subsequently put on hold.
Mukerjee’s appointment now brings another change at the helm of the department, with the senior bureaucrat expected to play a key role in steering the Centre’s higher education agenda in the months ahead.
