New Delhi: Senior IAS officer Mandeep K Bhandari has been appointed the new Chairperson of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), making him the third officer to take charge of the board in less than four months.
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) approved the appointment on September 25. Bhandari, a 2001-batch IAS officer of the AGMUT-cadre, will head CBSE in the rank and pay of an Additional Secretary to the Union government, with the post temporarily upgraded for the appointment.
He succeeds Lokhande Prashant Sitaram, who had been holding additional charge of the CBSE chairperson’s post. Lokhande had taken over from Rahul Singh on June 2.
Who Is Mandeep K Bhandari?
Bhandari is originally from Punjab. His official Jammu and Kashmir government profile records his academic qualification as MBBS. A J&K Bank profile also states that he completed his medical degree with a gold medal from Dayanand Medical College, Ludhiana, affiliated with Punjab University and Chandigarh.
Before moving to CBSE, Bhandari was serving as Principal Secretary to the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir. The official Lok Bhavan directory lists him in that position.
His J&K profile also records that he was given additional charge as Chief Executive Officer of the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board. He took charge as Principal Secretary to the Lieutenant Governor on March 6, 2023.
From Leh and Jammu to the Union Government
Bhandari has held several administrative assignments during his career, including Deputy Commissioner of Leh and Deputy Commissioner of Jammu, according to his official profile and institutional records. He has also served as Divisional Commissioner, Jammu, and held responsibilities in Jammu and Kashmir’s Health and Medical Education Department.
One of his prominent J&K assignments was with the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, where he served as Chief Executive Officer. Institutional records also document his earlier role as Additional Chief Executive Officer of the board.
He subsequently moved to the Union government, where he served as Private Secretary to the Union Minister handling higher education in the then Ministry of Human Resource Development in 2018. He later joined the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare as Joint Secretary, where he spent more than four years.
Bhandari’s CBSE Appointment Comes After Rapid Leadership Changes
Bhandari’s appointment follows a series of changes at the top of CBSE since June.
On June 2, 2026, the Centre transferred then CBSE Chairman Rahul Singh and Secretary Himanshu Gupta amid scrutiny surrounding the board’s newly introduced On-Screen Marking (OSM) system. The government simultaneously appointed Lokhande Prashant Sitaram as chairperson and Varun Bhardwaj as secretary.
On July 2, Lokhande was given additional charge of CBSE while continuing as Additional Secretary in the Union Home Ministry. His arrangement was to continue until a regular incumbent was appointed.
The September 25 order now places Bhandari in the chairperson’s post, ending Lokhande’s additional-charge arrangement.
Why Has CBSE Leadership Changed So Frequently?
The leadership changes followed scrutiny of CBSE’s On-Screen Marking system, which was introduced for digital evaluation of board examination answer sheets.
Reports during the 2026 examination cycle raised concerns over technical problems, access to evaluated answer sheets and complaints from students about scanned copies. The government ordered a one-member inquiry headed by former Union secretary S Radha Chauhan to examine the procurement of services related to the OSM system.
Reports later highlighted complaints concerning blurred or incomplete scanned answer sheets, alleged answer-sheet mismatches and difficulties associated with accessing or obtaining evaluated copies. These are reported complaints and do not, by themselves, establish wrongdoing in the evaluation system.
Bhandari therefore takes charge of CBSE after a period in which the board has faced scrutiny over its digital examination and evaluation processes.
What Lies Ahead for the New CBSE Chairman?
As chairperson, Bhandari will head CBSE under the Ministry of Education. His appointment brings an administrator with experience across Jammu and Kashmir, health administration and the Union government to the country’s central school education board.
His immediate tenure comes against the backdrop of continuing attention on CBSE’s examination systems, digital evaluation processes and the inquiry into OSM-related procurement.
