Geetika Srivastava, currently serving as joint secretary at the headquarters of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), will be India's new chargé d'affaires at its high commission in Islamabad, people associated with the matter confirmed on Monday.
According to an official, Srivastava is expected to take up her assignment in Islamabad shortly. She will succeed Suresh Kumar who is likely to return to New Delhi.
Who is Geetika Srivastava?
A 2005 batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer Srivastava is currently serving as a joint secretary in the Ministry of Evternal Affairs' Indo-Pacific wing.
Earlier, during the time span of 2007-2009, she served a two year tenure in the Indian Embassy in China and learnt Mandarin as part of her foreign language training which was followed by stints at the Regional Passport Office in Kolkata and as Director of the Indian Ocean Region division in the MEA.
Advertisement
Since August 2019, when Pakistan decided to reduce bilateral diplomatic ties following the abrogation of Article 370 which scrapped Jammu and Kashmir’s special status, the Indian and Pakistani missions in Islamabad and New Delhi have not been headed by high commissioners.
Following a string of terror attacks blamed on Pakistan-based terror outfits, the bilateral ties between the two warring countries have been at an all-time low.
In absence of the High Commissioners, the highest ranking diplomat is a CDA who is a Joint Secretary-rank equivalent officer.
