Rajesh Agrawal assumes charge as Commerce Secretary

Senior IAS officer Rajesh Agrawal has taken over as Secretary, Department of Commerce, according to an official government statement. He succeeds Sunil Barthwal, who retired on September 30. He was appointed the Special Secretary in the Department of Commerce on an interim basis in April this year.

Prior to his current role, Agrawal was responsible for overseeing India’s trade negotiations with various countries under Free Trade Agreements.

He served as the Chief Negotiator for the India–US Bilateral Trade Agreement, the Indo-Pacific Economic Forum, India–Australia CECA, and the review of the ASEAN FTA. He was also in charge of export promotion for the agriculture and related sectors.

India and the US have been negotiating a trade deal since March, with five rounds of talks held so far. Most recently, Agrawal, along with other officials from the Department of Commerce, met Brendan Lynch, Chief Negotiator at the United States Trade Representative, on September 16. According to a PIB release, the discussions were positive and forward-looking, covering various aspects of the trade deal. “It was decided to intensify efforts to achieve an early conclusion of a mutually beneficial Trade Agreement,” the commerce ministry stated.

Following U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement of tariffs earlier, India has actively negotiated to reduce the 50% duties imposed, of which 25% is additional and considered punitive for India's imports of Russian oil and defence equipment. As Agrawal takes charge as the new Commerce Secretary, he will continue bilateral discussions between India and the US.

Belonging to the 1994 IAS batch of the Manipur cadre, Agrawal is a highly experienced administrator with thirty years of governance, policy formulation, and implementation across various sectors, including skill development, human resources, apprenticeship, power, fertiliser, agriculture, and MSMEs.

He has played a key role in shaping India's skill development policies, represented the country at the World Skills Governing Council for three years, and led sectoral reforms in states such as Manipur, Jharkhand, and Bihar.

Agrawal also served as Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Power in the Government of Manipur in 2022.