Editor’s Note
This article reports the appointment of IFS officer Nidhi Tiwari as Private Secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, effective immediately.
Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer Nidhi Tiwari has been appointed as the Private Secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) issued an order to this effect on March 29, stating that the Cabinet’s Appointments Committee has approved Nidhi’s appointment. The DoPT said the order is effective immediately.
Nidhi has been serving as a Deputy Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) until now. Her appointment has been made on a co-terminus basis, meaning the tenure lasts until the Prime Minister’s term ends or until further orders.
In this role, Nidhi Tiwari will now handle PM Modi’s day-to-day administrative work such as managing his schedule, policy and administrative coordination, and communication.
Nidhi Tiwari, a 2014 batch IFS officer, secured the 96th rank in the Civil Services Examination 2013.
Prior to her new appointment, Nidhi had been serving in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) for the last approximately two and a half years. Before becoming Private Secretary, she was working as a Deputy Secretary in the PMO. In that position, she was handling key departments related to foreign and security affairs.
Earlier, Nidhi Tiwari joined the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) as an Under Secretary in November 2022. Before passing the 2013 Civil Services Examination, she also worked as an Assistant Commissioner (Commercial Tax) in Varanasi.
Nidhi Tiwari’s husband, Dr. Sushil Jaiswal, is a doctor by profession and runs his own hospital in Varanasi.
Before her tenure in the PMO, Nidhi was posted in the Ministry of External Affairs. There, she was part of the team handling disarmament and international security affairs. Her expertise in international relations proved valuable after moving to the PMO, where she contributed to the ‘Foreign and Security’ domain under National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval.
Nidhi Tiwari, hailing from Lucknow, completed her initial schooling and graduation from there. She graduated with a B.Sc. in Biology and then headed to Banaras Hindu University (BHU) for post-graduation. In 2006, she completed her studies in Biochemistry from BHU and received a Gold Medal.
Subsequently, Nidhi was selected as a scientist at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre. In 2008, she resigned from there and began preparing for the Civil Services Examination.
Before the 2013 Civil Services Examination, Nidhi Tiwari had also passed the 2012 Civil Services Examination. However, her name was on the waiting list at that time. During this period, she continued her job as Assistant Commissioner (Sales Tax) in Varanasi, and then in 2014, she was selected in the Civil Services Examination 2013 with a rank of 96.
In the Prime Minister’s Office, Dr. Pramod Kumar (PK) Mishra is serving as the Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister. PK Mishra is a retired 1972 batch Gujarat cadre IAS officer. When PM Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat, Mishra also worked as his Principal Secretary between 2001 and 2004.
The second name on the list is Ajit Doval, who is posted in the PMO as the National Security Advisor. Doval is the longest-serving NSA. He has been in this position since 2014. In 1968, Doval joined as an IPS officer in the Kerala cadre and served as the Director of the Intelligence Bureau in 2004-05.
The next name is Shaktikanta Das, who was given the responsibility of Principal Secretary-2 in February 2025. Born in Odisha, Shaktikanta Das is a 1980 batch IAS officer. Das is considered one of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s favorite officers and served as the RBI Governor for six years.
In addition, Vivek Kumar (IFS 2004) and Hardik Satishchandra Shah are working as Private Secretaries in the PMO. Shah is a 2010 batch Gujarat cadre officer.