New Delhi: In a significant administrative move aimed at strengthening accountability and restoring confidence in India’s examination system, the Centre has replaced Education Secretary Vineet Joshi with senior IAS officer Naresh Pal Gangwar. The decision comes amid nationwide protests over recent examination paper leaks and forms part of a broader series of measures announced by the government to ensure greater transparency, faster justice, and stronger safeguards for students.
According to an official notification issued late on Thursday, Vineet Joshi has been transferred to the Ministry of Panchayati Raj as Secretary, while Naresh Pal Gangwar has been appointed as the new Education Secretary. The reshuffle was part of a larger bureaucratic exercise involving 13 appointments and four in-situ upgrades across various ministries.
The government has presented the change as part of its commitment to fixing systemic issues and ensuring that negligence in matters affecting students is dealt with firmly. The administrative reshuffle follows Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s assurance that strict action would be taken against those responsible for examination paper leaks and against officials found guilty of negligence or apathy.
BJP MP Nishikant Dubey said the Prime Minister had acted decisively by replacing the Education Secretary, stating that those responsible for the paper leak controversy, as well as officials who failed to respond adequately, would face stringent action. He reiterated that the government remains committed to protecting the interests of students and restoring the credibility of the country’s examination process.
Alongside the change in leadership, the Centre has also announced the establishment of a fast-track court dedicated to hearing paper leak cases. The move is expected to ensure speedy disposal of such cases while sending a strong message that offences affecting the future of students will be dealt with swiftly. Prime Minister Modi has further indicated that additional measures will be discussed by the Union Cabinet and that a legislative proposal aimed at preventing examination leaks could be introduced in Parliament in the coming week.
Vineet Joshi, a 1992-batch IAS officer of the Manipur cadre, assumed charge as Secretary in the Department of Higher Education in January 2025. During his distinguished career, he served as Chief Secretary of Manipur and became the first Director General of the National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts major entrance examinations such as NEET and JEE. He has also held the positions of Chairman of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Education. Joshi is a mechanical engineering graduate from IIT Kanpur and holds an MBA from the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT).
His successor, Naresh Pal Gangwar, is a 1994-batch IAS officer of the West Bengal cadre with extensive administrative experience at both the state and central levels. Before taking over as Education Secretary, Gangwar served as Secretary in the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying.
Gangwar has also served as District Collector in Rajasthan’s Tonk, Jhalawar, Jodhpur and Bharatpur districts. In 2014, he was appointed Secretary in Rajasthan’s School Education Department, providing him with substantial experience in the education sector. At the Centre, he has worked as Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change before assuming his most recent assignment. Academically, he holds an MTech degree in Communication and Radar along with a Master’s degree in Economics.
With students demanding a transparent and fair examination process, the government has signalled that administrative changes, judicial mechanisms and policy reforms will work together to prevent future irregularities and protect the aspirations of millions of candidates across the country.
