Current Affairs - Awards and Honours

Deepti Gaur Mukerjee, a 1993-batch IAS officer of the Madhya Pradesh cadre, was appointed as the new Secretary of the Department of Higher Education on August 10, 2026. She succeeded Vineet Joshi, who was transferred to the Ministry of Panchayati Raj. The Department of Higher Education functions under the Ministry of Education and is responsible for university education, technical education and scholarships. It also oversees major regulatory bodies such as the University Grants Commission (UGC) and the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE).

Srinivasa Kumar Tummala assumed charge as the Secretary of the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) on August 10, 2026. A scientist with extensive experience in ocean and climate-related research, he previously served as Director of ESSO-INCOIS in Hyderabad from August 2020. His priorities include expanding the Deep Ocean Mission, advancing India’s Blue Economy agenda, and strengthening polar research and climate modelling. He also played a key role in establishing the Indian Tsunami Early Warning System and received the National Geoscience Award in 2010 and the Indian National Geospatial Award in 2008.

Deepak Dhar was announced as the co-recipient of the 2026 Dirac Medal, conferred by the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) in Italy. He is recognised for his major contributions to statistical mechanics and the study of complex systems, including phenomena such as earthquakes, traffic congestion and financial market fluctuations. Dhar became the first Indian recipient of the Boltzmann Medal in 2022 and is among only ten physicists worldwide to have received both the Boltzmann Medal and Dirac Medal. He currently serves as an INSA distinguished professor at ICTS, Bengaluru.

N Chandrasekaran announced that he would not seek reappointment as chairman of Tata Sons after his current term ends in February 2027. He requested the Tata Sons board to begin the succession process early to ensure a smooth transition. Chandrasekaran joined the Tata Group in 1987 and served as CEO and Managing Director of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) from 2009 before becoming chairman of Tata Sons in 2017. During his tenure, the Tata Group expanded across technology, automobiles, steel, aviation, defence, electronics and semiconductors. His decision followed the lack of unanimous board support for extending his tenure beyond February 2027.

Dr Srinivasa Kumar Tummala has assumed charge as the Secretary of the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), Government of India. He is a noted oceanographer and distinguished scientist with more than three decades of experience in remote sensing, satellite oceanography, coastal hazard mitigation, and disaster management. He played a key role as Project Manager of India’s Tsunami Early Warning System at INCOIS following the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. He has also served as Director of ESSO-INCOIS, Hyderabad, since August 2020, and has contributed significantly to ocean information services and disaster preparedness.