CBSE gets new chairman Mandeep K Bhandari days after OSM controversy

The appointments committee of the Cabinet, government of India has appointed IAS officer Mandeep K Bhandari as chairperson of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). In another notable appointment, IAS Ankita Mishra Bundela, has been designated as additional secretary in the the department of higher education.

The reshuffle comes days after the CBSE's on-screen marking (OSM) controversy was introduced for evaluating Class 12 results, which led to widespread protest over blurred and mismatched answer sheets.

According to the government order issued by personnel ministry, CBSE appointed IAS Bhandari in the rank and pay of additional secretary to the government of India by temporarily upgrading the post.

While Bunedela is additional secretary at the department of agriculture and farmers welfare, ministry of agriculture and farmers welfare as aditional decretary of the higher education department.

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CBSE's new chairman

Bhandari, a 2001 batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the AGMUT (Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, Mizoram, and Union Territories) cadre, is currently working as Principal Secretary to the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir.

Senior IAS officer Lokhande Prashant Sitaram had additional charge of the post. This year, on July 2, Sitaram was appointed an additional secretary in the union home ministry, holding additional charge as the CBSE chairperson. Incidentally, he was appointed as the CBSE chief on June 2 after the incumbent was shunted out amid the On-Screen Marking system row.