Ajay Seth, the former Secretary of the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) has been appointed as the new chief of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai), according to a report by CNBC-TV18.
Seth is supposed to take charge for this post, which has been lying vacant since March 2025, for a term of three years. He will succeed Debasish Panda, who had taken charge of Irdai chair in March 2022 after it was vacant for 10 months.
Seth, who is an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer from the Karnataka cadre (1987-Batch), brings over three decades of experience in public administration.
He served as DEA Secretary in the Finance Ministry from 2021 and was also given additional charge of Revenue Secretary earlier this year when Tuhin Kanta Pandey moved to head the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi).
Seth’s long career has revolved largely around economic policy and public finance. His experience spans areas like fiscal management, infrastructure financing, digital payments, taxation, budgeting, foreign investment, and public-private partnerships. He also worked in the social sector, including education and healthcare, as well as in urban transport and infrastructure planning.
Seth has spent 18 years handling public finance and tax policy, and around three years each in social sector roles and urban infrastructure, serving across the central government, Karnataka state administration, and even at the Asian Development Bank.
In 2013, Seth was conferred the Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration for his work in reforming Karnataka’s commercial tax system.
He holds degrees from the University of Roorkee and Ateneo de Manila University.
