New Delhi [India] : Former Central Board of Direct Taxes Chairman Pramod Chandra Mody assumed charge as the new Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha on Friday. The Rajya Sabha Secretariat in an official notification informed that “Pramod Chandra Mody, a 1982-batch retired IRS officer and former Chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) assumed charge as the new Secretary-General of Rajya Sabha.” The Vice President of India and Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu appointed Mody as the Secretary-General, Rajya Sabha today in the rank and status of Cabinet Secretary till August 10, 2022 or until further orders whichever is earlier. He succeeds Dr Parasaram Pattabhi Kesava Ramacharyulu, who demitted office as SG today. Dr Ramacharyulu has been appointed as Advisor. Born on September 1, 1959, Mody has almost 40 years of long experience in handling various posts under the Government of India including Chairman of CBDT. He has deep insight into jurisprudence and exposure to judicial and quasi-judicial processes. As the Member (Administration), CBDT, he has handled the entire cadre of Indian Revenue Service Officers and staff. He has also supervised the functioning of an investigation wing of the Income Tax Department spread throughout the country as the Member (Investigation), CBDT. During his tenure as the Chairman of CBDT, he encouraged and promoted extensive use of technology in the Income Tax Department and constant upgrading of systems culminating into the introduction of Faceless Assessment and Faceless Appeals Schemes as well as other projects leading to a drastic reduction in time taken for processing of Income Tax Returns and issuance of refunds Mody holds Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Law degrees and also has a Diploma in Journalism. He has attended various domestic and international training courses including the Advanced Management course for tax officials at Royal Institute of Public Administration, London, Commercial public enterprises management course at the University of Bradford, United Kingdom, and other mid-career training programmes.
