Ajay Kumar (born 2 October 1962) is the current

Chairperson The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a Board of directors, board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by ...

of the

Union Public Service Commission The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) is a constitutional body tasked with recruiting officers for All India Services and the Central Civil Services (Group A and B) through various standardized examinations. In 2023, 1.3 million applica ...

(UPSC). A former IAS officer from the 1985 batch, he was the former

Defence Secretary of India Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense indust ...

. Kumar is an alumnus of

IIT Kanpur The Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IIT- Kanpur or IIT-K) is a public institute of technology located in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India. As an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), it was declared an Institute of National Importance by th ...

and the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...

. Kumar was the longest-serving secretary in the

Ministry of defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...

, having also held the position of Secretary in the Department of Defence Production. Kumar held positions, including additional secretary in the

Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITy) is an executive agency of the Government of India, Union Government of the India, Republic of India. It was carved out of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (I ...

and director general of the

National Informatics Centre The National Informatics Centre (NIC) is an Indian government department under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY). It provides infrastructure, IT Consultancy, IT Services including but not limited to architecture, ...

. During his tenuere in the

, he worked in the implementation of

Digital India Digital India is a campaign launched by the Government of India to make its services available to citizens electronically via improved online infrastructure and by increasing Internet connectivity. The initiative includes plans to connect ru ...

programme including

Unified Payments Interface Unified Payments Interface, commonly known as UPI is an Indian instant payment system as well as protocol developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) in 2016. The interface facilitates inter-bank peer-to-peer (P2P) and pe ...

Aadhaar Aadhaar (Hindi: आधार, ) is a twelve-digit unique identity number that can be obtained voluntarily by all residents of India, based on their biometrics and demography, demographic data. The data is collected by the Unique Identification ...

, MyGov.in, Government e Marketplace and Jeevan Pramaan.

Education

Kumar has a

Bachelor of Technology A Bachelor of Technology (BTech) is an undergraduate degree that is awarded for a higher education program in engineering. Countries Australia In Australia, the Bachelor of Technology degree is offered by RMIT University, Edith Cowan Univ ...

in electrical engineering from the

Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur The Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IIT- Kanpur or IIT-K) is a public institute of technology located in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India. As an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), it was declared an Institute of National Importance by ...

, has a master's degree in

development economics Development economics is a branch of economics that deals with economic aspects of the development process in low- and middle- income countries. Its focus is not only on methods of promoting economic development, economic growth and structural c ...

from the

, and has a PhD degree in

business administration Business administration is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. Overview The administration of a business includes the performance o ...

from the

Carlson School of Management The Curtis L. Carlson School of Management is the business school of the University of Minnesota, a public research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Carlson School offers undergraduate and graduate degr ...

at the University of Minnesota. Kumar was awarded two separate fellowships by the

. He is recognized as the distinguished alumnus by the

for his professional excellence and nation-building efforts. He is also conferred an honorary Doctor of Philosophy by Amity University in 2019.

Appointment as UPSC Chairman

On 13 May 2025, Dr. Ajay Kumar was appointed as the Chairperson of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) by the President of India, in accordance with Article 316(1) of the Constitution of India. He assumed charge on 15 May 2025, with the oath of office administered by Lt. Gen. Raj Shukla (Retd.), the senior-most member of the Commission at the time.

Startups, Strategy, and Thought Leadership

Kumar, a seasoned mentor to startups across various domains, founded MGF-Kavachh and raised a corpus of ₹250 crores. The fund is a SEBI-approved venture capital fund and dedicated to supporting startups focused on indigenizing critical technologies and domains in aerospace, and deep tech sectors. Kumar is appointed as an advisor to the board of the US-India Strategic and Partnership Forum (USISPF). He is Director on Board at

Sify Sify Technologies Limited (formerly Satyam Infoway) is an Indian information and communications technology (ICT) company providing telecom services, data center services, cloud & managed services, transformation integration services, and ...

. He is distinguished visiting Professor at

with Department of Management Sciences and with Department of Economic Sciences. Ajay is also non-resident Senior Fellow at Carnegie India. He is an active writer for Indian national dailies and maintains a monthly column in

Business Standard ''Business Standard'' is an Indian English-language daily edition newspaper published by Business Standard Private Limited, also available in Hindi. Founded in 1975, the newspaper covers the Indian economy, infrastructure, international busi ...

titled "Off the Grid."

iDEX, Indigenization, and Defence Tech Reforms (2017–2022)

Kumar's work involved setting up the defence startup ecosystem through the Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) program from 2017 to 2022 and advancing the

initiatives. Between 2020 and 2021, he worked on policy matters to support startups in the AI, drone, and space industries, and from 2018 to 2022, he worked on enhancing the performance of Defence Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs). During his tenure, the defence industry ecosystem underwent significant changes, particularly under the

Atmanirbhar Bharat Atmanirbhar Bharat () is a phrase popularized by Prime Minister of India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his administration, led by the Bharatiya Janata Party, for economic self-sufficiency and national development during a pandemic. The term ...

initiative. As a former Defence Secretary, Kumar worked on the corporatization of the

Ordnance Factories Board The Directorate of Ordnance (Coordination & Services) (abbreviated: DOO(C&S)) is an authority under the Department of Defence Production (DDP) of Ministry of Defence (MoD), Government of India. Its primary work is to management, give instructi ...

, a 200-year-old institution employing 80,000 people. Dr. Kumar oversaw reforms, including the establishment of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) position in 2020 and the launch of the Agniveer scheme in 2022. Dr Ajay Kumar commissioned the Indian Coast Guard Ship (ICGS) Saksham, the fifth of the 105-metre Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) class. Kumar worked on initiatives related to emerging defence technologies, including cyberspace and underwater warfare, and supported efforts to enhance research and development investments aimed at strengthening defence capabilities and operational efficiency.. On 20 April 2022, Kumar launched INS Vagsheer, the sixth Scorpene-class submarine under Project-75, at Mazagon Dock in

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

Digital India and Innovation Initiatives

During his tenure at the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Dr. Ajay Kumar worked on the implementation of Digital India initiatives such as MyGov, Government e-Marketplace (GeM), Jeevan Pramaan, and Aadhaar-enabled services. He worked on the establishment of the Electronics Development Fund (EDF) to support technology startups. He also worked on policy frameworks related to emerging technologies including artificial intelligence, drones, and space. During his tenure, the Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) program was launched to support innovation in the defence sector.

Honours and awards

He received distinguished Alumni award from

in 2019 for the entrepreneurship excellence work. Kumar is oversaw the creation of an Electronics Development Fund, which focuses on developing technology start-ups in defence sector. Ajay Kumar was named one of the top-50 effective bureaucrats in the year 2019 in a survey conducted by Asia Post for adhering to the cardinal principles of civil service that is professionalism, anonymity, integrity and neutrality. * 1994 – Awarded the ''Silver Elephant'' medallion by the Bharat Scouts and Guides, the highest national award of the organization, in recognition of service to the scouting movement. * 2012 – Conferred the ''Electronics Leader of the Year'' award for his contribution to the development and promotion of the electronics industry in India * 2015 – The ''Technovation Sarabhai Award'' from the India Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA) for excellence in driving innovation and indigenous technology development in the electronics sector. * 2017 – ''Champion of Change'' by the Consumer Electronics and Appliances Manufacturers Association (CEAMA) for his policy leadership and support for the Indian electronics manufacturing ecosystem. * 2019 - Awarded Honorary Doctorate by Amity University, Noida * 2019 - Top 50 effective bureaucrats by Asia Post * 2019 - Distinguished Alumni,

* 2021 - Fellow of

Indian National Academy of Engineering The Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE) was founded in 1987. It consists of India's engineers, engineer-scientists and technologists covering the entire spectrum of engineering disciplines. The academy is registered under the Socie ...

in 2021

Career in Indian Administrative Service

Kumar has served in various posts in both the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

and the

Government of Kerala The Government of Kerala (abbreviated as GoK), also known as the Kerala Government, is the administrative body responsible for governing the Indian States and territories of India, state of Kerala. The government is led by a chief minister, who ...

, such as Principal Secretary (Information Technology), managing director of the

Kerala State Electronics Development Corporation Kerala State Electronics Development Corporation Limited (KELTRON) is an electronic enterprise situated in Trivandrum, Kerala, India. It was founded in 1973 by K. P. P. Nambiar. Location Units of KELTRON are in the following cities of In ...

, Secretary (Industries), managing director of the Kerala State Co-operative Agricultural and Rural Development Bank, general manager in the

Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation Ltd. is the industrial and investment promotion agency of the Government of Kerala (India), for the promotion and development of medium and large scale units in the State of Kerala. As the Nodal A ...

and as the district magistrate and collector of the Palghat (now

Palakkad Palakkad (), Renaming of cities in India, also known as Palghat, historically known as Palakkattussery, is a city and a municipality in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kerala. It is the administrative headquarters of P ...

)

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

in the

Kerala government The Government of Kerala (abbreviated as GoK), also known as the Kerala Government, is the administrative body responsible for governing the Indian state of Kerala. The government is led by a chief minister, who selects all the other ministers. ...

; and as the Defence Production Secretary, additional secretary in the

, joint secretary in the Department of Information Technology of the erstwhile

Ministry of Communications and Information Technology A Communications Ministry or Department of Communications is a ministry or other government agency charged with communication. Communications responsibilities include regulating telecommunications, postal services, broadcasting and print media. The ...

, director in the Department of Biotechnology of the Ministry of Science and Technology and as a deputy secretary in the Department of Home of the

Ministry of Home Affairs An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law enforcement. In some states, the i ...

in the Indian government. Ajay kumar spent three decade of his service with the Kerala state government where he headed three different departments. Kumar also served as a private secretary to a minister in the Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Sources (now

Ministry of New and Renewable Energy The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) is a ministry of the Government of India, headed by current cabinet (government), Union Cabinet Minister Pralhad Joshi, that is mainly responsible for research and development, intellectual prope ...

Principal Secretary

He was Principal Secretary to Government of

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

Information Technology Information technology (IT) is a set of related fields within information and communications technology (ICT), that encompass computer systems, software, programming languages, data processing, data and information processing, and storage. Inf ...

Department from October 2007 to December 2010.

Joint Secretary

Kumar held the post of Joint Secretary,

and additional charge of

Director General A director general, general director or director-general (plural: ''directors general'', ''general directors'', ''directors-general'', ''director generals'' or ''director-generals'') is a senior executive officer, often the chief executive officer ...

from 2010 to 2014.

Additional Secretary

He was Additional Secretary,

during 2015 - 2019

Defence Production Secretary

Kumar was appointed as the Defence Production Secretary by the

prime minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

-headed

Appointments Committee of the Cabinet The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) is a high-level committee within the Government of India responsible for appointing senior officials to key positions in the central government and public sector undertakings. He served as Defence Production Secretary till 23 August 2019 and was succeeded by Subhash Chandra, an IAS officer of Karnataka cadre (1986 batch).

Defence Secretary

Kumar was appointed as Union Defence Secretary on 21 August 2019, and he assumed office on 23 August 2019 when Sanjay Mitra retired and served the office till 31 October 2022. Kumar travelled to Paris along with Raksha Mantri

Rajnath Singh Rajnath Singh (; born 10 July 1951) is an Indian politician and lecturer who is serving the Defence Minister of India since 20 May 2019. He was also the Deputy Leader of the House, Lok Sabha since 2014. He also served the Home Minister in th ...

to take delivery of first

Rafale The Dassault Rafale (, literally meaning "gust of wind", or "burst of fire" in a more military sense) is a French twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter aircraft designed and built by Dassault Aviation. Equipped with a wide range ...

fighter jet. On 4 June 2020, Kumar tested positive for

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

Secretary, Department of Defence Production

Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar was assigned additional charge of Secretary, Department of Defence Production on 30th Nov 2021 and served the office till 31 October 2022.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kumar, Ajay 1962 births Living people IIT Kanpur alumni University of Minnesota alumni Carlson School of Management alumni Indian Administrative Service officers People from Uttar Pradesh Defence Secretaries of India District magistrate