Shobhana K Pattanayak has taken charge as the Director General of the Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI), Hyderabad.

He retired as Secretary, Department of Agriculture, Cooperation & Farmers’ Welfare (Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare), Government of India, in September, 2018.

The ASCI, started in 1956 is a well known college for practising managers.

Pattanayak took over from Nirmala Apsingikar, the in-charge DG, in the presence of the ASCI Court of Governors' Chairman K Padmanabhaiah, former Union Home Secretary, at a brief ceremony at Bella Vista on Thursday.

Prior to his stint as the Secretary in Agriculture Department, Pattanayak held several positions in Karnataka, including Principal Secretary, Energy. He was the Registrar of the University of Mysuru too.

He was the first mission director, national horticulture mission of the Centre when it was launched in 2005.

Pattanayak was posted as Minister (Agriculture), Embassy of India, Rome & Alternate Permanent Representative of India to UN Agencies in Rome during 2009-12. He served on the Evaluation Committee and the Executive Board of IFAD; held the position of Member, Finance Committee (2009-11 & 2011-13) and Chairperson of Committee on Agriculture, FAO (2010-2012) and President of Executive Board, WFP (2012) in Rome, says a release from ASCI.

comment COMMENT NOW