It's not only political leadership of India which is gaining global recognition, the bureaucratic leadership too is seizing the top positions. In last one year, two Indian bureaucrats have attained global position – both creating history of sorts.
For the first time in the history, Voruganti Srinivas, Chief Secretary of Rajasthan, has an elected as the President of International Institute of Administrative Sciences (IIAS) for the term 2025–2028. At that time, Srinivas was serving as Secretary of the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG).
Few days back, Vivek Aggarwal, Culture Secretary of India, was appointed as Vice-President of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) – another first for the country.
V Srinivas is a 1989 batch Rajasthan cadre officer while Vivek Aggarwal is a 1994 batch Madhya Pradesh cadre officer.
What is IIAS?
IIAS is a premier global federation focused on public governance. Established in 1940 and headquartered at Brussels (Belgium), it has 30 member states. While it is independent body, it works closely with United Nations. It bridges the gap between public service practitioners and academia.
Elected by the General Assembly with 61.70% of the vote in a democratic process involving IIAS members worldwide, Srinivas's election reflects the Institute's commitment to transparent and participatory governance. His presidency promises to strengthen IIAS's global mission to improve public governance through research, education, and practice.
What is FATF?
The Financial Action Task Force is the Paris-based inter-governmental body that sets global standards to prevent money laundering, terrorist financing and the financing of proliferation. The FATF Presidency runs on a two-year term, and the Vice-President assists the President in carrying out the organisation's mandate.
India's elevation to the Vice-Presidency reflects the credibility and trust the country has earned within the FATF Global Network of more than 200 jurisdictions. It builds directly on India's strong showing in its most recent Mutual Evaluation, and on the country's sustained contribution to shaping global policy on emerging risks, including those associated with virtual asset service providers and digital payments.
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