New Delhi: The Central Government has appointed Nitish Suri, a 2011-batch officer of the Indian Trade Service (ITradeS), as Director in the Department of Higher Education under the Ministry of Education. The appointment was made under the Central Staffing Scheme for a period of five years or until further orders, whichever comes earlier.
According to the order issued by the Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) on Friday (August 8, 2025), Suri will be relieved from his current assignment as Joint Director General of Foreign Trade (Joint DGFT) to take up the new role immediately.
Background and Career Highlights
Nitish Suri has been a key figure in India’s trade governance and export control architecture. In his current role as Joint DGFT at the Department of Commerce, he has contributed significantly to:
- Strategic international trade policy formulation
- Export promotion initiatives
- Management of India’s export control systems
- He has also represented India in several multilateral export control regimes, including:
- Wassenaar Arrangement
- Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR)
- Australia Group
Suri played a pivotal role in India’s implementation of the WTO’s Trade Facilitation Agreement, contributing to compliance, simplification of procedures, and promoting ease of doing business in international trade.
Academic and Professional Credentials
Before joining the Indian Trade Service in 2012, Suri gained corporate experience as–
- Senior Business Analyst at Innodata Isogen
- Business Analyst at Infosys
His academic qualifications include:
- Post Graduate Diploma in International Business – Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT)
- B.E. in Computer Science – Vishwakarma Institute of Technology, University of Pune
- Visiting Fellow – James Martin Centre for Non-Proliferation Studies (CNS), Middlebury Institute of International Studies, Monterey
New Role in Higher Education
Suri’s transition to the Department of Higher Education aligns with the Ministry of Education’s aim to integrate global best practices in education policy and administration. His exposure to international systems and multilateral institutions is expected to contribute to the department’s strategic initiatives such as:
- Global collaboration in higher education
- Innovation in education policy
- Cross-sectoral partnerships between academia and industry
