He is a man of few words, but his actions speak louder. His public appearances are fewer, and he likes to keep a very low profile. Yet, he is one of the most powerful bureaucrats in the country. Meet Pramod Kumar Mishra, better known as PK Mishra, a 1972-batch IAS officer of the Gujarat cadre and the Principal Secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He has been with Modi for the past 23 years – except for a brief stint at the Centre. His appointment is till 2029. That means he will be the longest-serving IAS officer in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
Modi was appointed Chief Minister of Gujarat on October 1, 2001. The same day, Dr. PK Mishra was appointed as Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister.
DISASTER MANAGEMENT
Dr. Mishra’s first challenge was to launch relief and reconstruction work in the earthquake-hit Kutch region of Gujarat. After a disastrous earthquake hit Kutch in 2001, Mishra shone by creating a disaster management system that became the Gujarat State Disaster Management (GSDMA). He was the Chief Executive Officer of the Authority. Mishra also further shaped the disaster management body, which received various awards for its disaster recovery and management. He not only fast-paced reconstruction and resurrection of infrastructure there but also ensured livelihood for the displaced people.
EXPERIENCES CHRONICLED
PK Mishra embellished his work in disaster management and wrote a book, ‘The Kutch Earthquake 2001: Recollection, Lessons, and Insights.’ In 2019, he was conferred a United Nations award for disaster management and disaster risk reduction. He has authored several research papers on agricultural development, which have been published in various national and international research journals.
His next big task was to turn around public sector undertakings (PSUs) of the Gujarat Government. Within a couple of years, units like Gujarat Alkalies Limited and Gujarat State Fertilisers Limited, which were in a loss of Rs 200 crore to Rs 800 crore, started booking profits.
KHET TALAVADI SCHEME
Dr. Mishra has had good exposure to ministries like Agriculture, Cooperatives, Rural Development, Energy, Power, Finance, and Revenue in Gujarat. He used his experience in two major areas – ensuring irrigation and drinking water in the entire state through the Sardar Sarovar Project and realising CM Modi’s dream, Khet Talavadi (small ponds in agricultural fields).
It was during his tenure that Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation ventured into oil exploration fields too, till then an exclusive domain of central companies like ONGC only.
He also oversaw the 2002 post-Godhra riots and subsequent inquiries. His name figures in the IPS RB Sreekumar’s diary as one of those officers who tried to ensure that investigations in the post-Godhra riots were soft-pedalled. But the allegations were never put up to legal scrutiny, and Dr. Mishra continued to have an unblemished career.
CENTRAL DEPUTATION
He remained in the post till May 12, 2004, when he was called on deputation to the center as Additional Secretary of the Urban Development Ministry. He retired as Agriculture Secretary in Dr. Manmohan Singh’s government in 2008.
During his tenure, the government came up with innovative schemes like Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana and the National Food Security Mission that sought to incentivize the state government’s investment in the agriculture sector. The schemes, since then, have emerged as successful schemes to encourage state governments’ investment in focus sectors.
BACK TO GUJARAT
After he retired from the service in 2008, the Modi-led Gujarat government appointed him as chairman of the Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission. Dr. Misra returned to Gujarat to ‘fix’ power tariffs. People were surprised that despite being in Delhi since May 2004, he still managed to remain close to Modi. Though he had an offer from Hyderabad as well, he preferred to serve in Ahmedabad. He retired from this position at the age of 65 in 2013.
Later, he came down to Delhi to work at Vivekanand International Foundation (VIF), where other officers like Nripendra Mishra and Ajit Doval were already working.
IN THE PMO
A year later, after getting elected as Prime Minister of India, Modi called him to serve in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) as Additional Principal Secretary, a post specially created for him. He is credited with introducing innovation and transformative changes in human resource management and particularly played a key role in Cabinet reshuffles and the selection of Padma awardees. He continued to work at this post for the next five and a half years.
On getting re-elected as PM, Modi again appointed Mishra as Additional Principal Secretary.
Dr. PK Mishra was elevated to the post of Principal Secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2019, replacing Nripendra Misra. With his reappointment, Mishra became the longest-serving and one of the most trusted advisors to the Prime Minister.
VALUES THAT MATTER
People who have worked closely with him describe Mishra as a person who values integrity the most, as people with high integrity are vital to the government. The PM has immense faith in Mishra’s ability to “harmonise conflicting elements — people or situations, they added while citing events of 2017 when Mishra played a crucial role in resolving the perceived difference between the government and RBI governor Urjit Patel over lowering interest rates.
ECONOMIC ODISHI
Mishra hails from Odisha. The 75-year-old, who excels in agriculture and economy, holds degrees from the Delhi School of Economics and a doctorate in Economics/Development Studies from Sussex University in the UK.
