Muktesh Pardeshi named India’s envoy to Turkiye
Senior diplomat Muktesh Kumar Pardeshi, a key member of the team of officials behind India’s successful hosting of the G20 Summit in 2023, has been named the new ambassador to Türkiye.
Pardeshi, a member of the 1991 batch of the Indian Foreign Service, is currently serving as a secretary at the external affairs ministry. He was till recently responsible for passports, consular matters and overseas Indian affairs.
“He is expected to take up the assignment shortly,” the ministry said in a brief statement.
Turkiye has emerged as an influential player in regional geopolitics, including efforts to end conflicts in West Asia. It also played a key role in the creation of a corridor for the export of grains from Ukraine following the Russian invasion in 2022.
Ties between India and Turkiye have witnessed several ups and downs in recent years, though there has been considerable growth in areas such as trade and tourism.
The post of India’s envoy to Turkiye has been vacant since June, following the death of incumbent Virander Paul after a prolonged illness.
Pardeshi also served as special secretary for G20 operations and was a key part of the team of government officials that oversaw India’s hosting of the summit of the 20 largest economies in September 2023. The summit resulted in a leaders’ declaration after the Indian side helped bridge deep divisions among G20 members over the Ukraine conflict, and saw the inclusion of the African Union in the grouping as a full member.
As the secretary responsible for consular matters and overseas Indian affairs, Pardeshi initiated various measures to assist millions of Indians living in West Asian states and to boost people-to-people ties with the region.
Pardeshi earlier served as India’s high commissioner to New Zealand during 2019-2022. He served as the ambassador to Mexico during 2016-2019, when India-Mexico trade increased from $5.9 billion to $10.15 billion, recording 75% growth over a three-year period.
He also served in different positions in the Indian missions in Indonesia and Geneva during a diplomatic career spanning more than three decades.
Pardeshi served as joint secretary and chief passport officer at the headquarters in New Delhi during 2010-2016, when he was credited for implementing reforms in passport services. The number of passports issued during that period doubled from six million to 12 million.
As “mission leader” of the Passport Seva Project, he received several awards, including the national award on e-Governance (gold) for 2014-2015 and Web Ratna (Platinum) for 2014.
Pardeshi studied at University of Delhi and obtained his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in arts from the Hindu College and the Delhi School of Economics, respectively.
