Dr. Rajender Kumar is a 2004-batch officer of the Indian
Administrative Service (IAS),
belonging to the Gujarat Cadre. He holds a B.A.M.S. in Ayurvedic. He has over two decades of
experience in
public administration, public policy and development economics across leading national and
international
institutions.
He has served as District Development Officer for Bharuch and Ahmedabad districts, and as
Collector & District
Magistrate of Rajkot and Surat. During his district assignments, he played a key role in
strengthening public
service delivery, improving education quality and health outcomes, upgrading rural
sanitation, maintaining law
and order, and advancing disaster management and mitigation systems.
From 2016 to 2021, he worked at the policy formulation and strategic leadership levels in
the Government of
India. As Director to the Prime Minister of India (PMO), he has worked on the evolution of
strategic thinking,
policy formulation and policy implementation on key flagship schemes and programs such as
Swachh Bharat Mission,
AMRUT Mission, Smart Cities Mission, Housing for all under PMAY, Mission Indra-Dhanush,
Health for all-Ayushman
Bharat & PMJAY scheme, National Digital Health Mission etc. He has worked very closely on
the Formulation of
National Education Policy 2020.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, he served as the sectoral officer in-charge of health in the
PMO and acted as a
central co-ordinating authority across Ministries, Departments, and State Governments. He
convened two national
Empowered Groups—Medical Management and Logistics—and was deeply involved in India’s
pandemic response strategy
and in shaping India’s vaccine strategy including the Vaccine Maitri global outreach
programme.
From 2021 to 2024, Dr. Kumar served on the Board of the World Bank as an Advisor to the
Executive Director for
India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and Sri Lanka, and as Council Member of the Global Environment
Facility (GEF),
representing India and neighbouring countries. He represented India at several key global
institutions and
forums including IBRD, IDA, IFC, MIGA, the G-24, the GEF Council, the Global Biodiversity
Fund negotiations in
Brasilia, the GEF Assembly in Vancouver, and the IDA Mid-Term Review in Zanzibar.
In July 2024, Dr. Kumar was appointed as Secretary to the Government of Gujarat, heading the
Departments of
Tourism, Civil Aviation, and the Pavitra Yatradham Vikas Board. Since January, 2026, he is
posted as
Commissioner of Transport, Government of Gujarat and holding charge of MD, GSFC.