NEW DELHI: Manharsinh Laxmanbhai Yadav, who served in the Prime Minister’s Office till recently, has been tipped as India’s next representative to Taiwan while Acquino Vimal, currently deputy chief of mission in Beijing, is expected to be the new envoy to Norway as part of a round of diplomatic postings.
Prabhat Kumar, currently additional secretary (Passport Seva Project), is tipped to be the next high commissioner to South Africa, while Vinod K Jacob, now the deputy high commissioner in Sri Lanka, is tipped to be the new envoy to Bahrain, people familiar with the matter said.
Yadav dealt with Taiwanese businesses that have invested in India during his stint of more than five years in the Prime Minister’s Office, the people said. He was appointed to the PMO in January 2018. If his posting as the Indian representative in Taipei goes ahead, he will be a rare non-Mandarin speaking diplomat to hold the position, the people added.
Yadav is expected to replace Gauranga Lal Das in Taipei. Das, who earlier served in Beijing and Washington and in the Americas division, was appointed the director general of the India Taipei Association or India’s de facto mission in Taiwan in July 2020.
Taiwanese firms have emerged as key players in India’s efforts to ramp up its capability to manufacture semiconductors needed for products ranging from automobiles to electronic items.
Vimal, who earlier did a stint in the Indian mission in Pakistan, has been part of the team of diplomats dealing with the fallout of the dragging military standoff with China on the Line of Actual Control (LAC). Norway is part of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) along with Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland, and the bloc is currently engaged in negotiations with India for a free trade agreement.
As part of the next round of diplomatic postings, several officials holding key positions in the external affairs ministry are also expected to pick up ambassadorial assignments. Among them are joint secretary JP Singh, head of the Pakistan-Afghanistan-Iran desk, and joint secretary (Europe West) Sandeep Chakravorty, who earlier served as ambassador to Peru and Bolivia.
In another recent round of postings, external affairs minister S Jaishankar’s principal aide, Shilpak Ambule, was named the high commissioner to Singapore, replacing P Kumaran, who is set to return to the headquarters. Vipul, the head of the Gulf division, was named the new envoy to Qatar, replacing Deepak Mittal, who is set to join the Prime Minister’s Office.
