Months after the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) came under major scrutiny and was in the eye of a storm over lapses in the implementation of its On-Screen Marking (OSM) system, senior IAS officer Mandeep K Bhandari was on Friday appointed as the board's chairperson.
The OSM system and the post-result process triggered concerns following a flood of complaints from students and parents over alleged answer-sheet mix-ups, portal technical glitches, payment failures, and delays in verification and re-evaluation.
According to an order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) approved Bhandari's appointment. He will take charge from Lokhande Prashant Sitaram, who was holding additional charge as CBSE chairperson.
Who Is Mandeep K Bhandari?
Mandeep K Bhandari is a 2001-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the AGMUT cadre. The cadre covers Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, Mizoram, and the Union Territories, including Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
Bhandari is currently serving as Principal Secretary to the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir.
His appointment comes after the Centre, on June 2, removed Rahul Singh as CBSE chairperson and Himanshu Gupta as board secretary following serious lapses in the handling of the CBSE board examination result process. The Centre also ordered a probe into the procurement of the digital evaluation system.
According to his service record, Bhandari has completed more than 25 years of service and has worked at 10 different places in 10 positions.
Mandeep K Bhandari's Educational Background
Bhandari has a medical background. His educational qualifications include an MBBS from Punjab University, Chandigarh, and Dayanand Medical College and Hospital.
His service profile records qualifications in surgery and medicine. He is also an MBBS gold medallist.
Mandeep K Bhandari's Administrative Career
Bhandari has held several administrative positions at the Centre and in Union Territories during his career.
His previous responsibilities include:
- Joint Secretary
- Private Secretary to a minister
- Additional Chief Executive Officer
- Deputy Commissioner
- Additional Development Commissioner
- Additional Secretary
- Chief Administrative Officer
He is currently serving as Principal Secretary to the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir. Bhandari will now take charge as the CBSE chairperson.
