Ajit Kumar Seth gets another 6 months

Cabinet secretary Ajit Kumar Seth, an Uttar Pradesh cadre IAS officer of 1974 batch, has been given yet another extension of six months with effect from June 14, with the rider that it can be ended even earlier.

Seth was earlier given an extension of one year by former prime minister Manmohan Singh's government up to June 13. Sources said Prime Minister Narendra Modi decided not to disturb him since he heads the bureaucracy in the government of India, and as such is required to tune the bureaucracy that may not be possible for a new incumbent to get cracking immediately on.

Finance secretary Arvind Mayaram and revenue secretary Rajiv Takru may also continue in view of the budget preparation exercise that kicked off on Monday.