New Delhi, Dec 11 (UNI) Former Department of Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das was on Tuesday appointed the new Governor of the Reserve Bank of India.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet approved the appointment of Mr Das as the Governor of the central bank for three years.

“The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Shri Shaktikanta Das, IAS retd, former Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, as Governor, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for a period of years,” a government order said here.

The decision came after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley met Prime Minister Narendra Modi following the resignation of Urjit Patel as RBI governor.

Mr Das, a retired IAS officer of Tamil Nadu cadre, was also the Sherpa to the Prime Minister at the recently concluded G-20 Summit in Argentina.

Dr Patel had tendered his resignation on Monday citing personal reasons. His resignation comes against the backdrop of increasing tensions between the Finance Ministry and the Reserve Bank of India. Dr Patel, 55, who took over as the 24th Governor of the central bank on September 5, 2016, had the shortest tenure since the year 1992.

UNI SW AR 1846