Senior IPS officer Ravi Sinha was on Monday appointed as the new head of the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), succeeding Samanth Goel who completes four years at the helm of the external spy agency this the month-end.
According to the notice issued by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), the 59-year-old officer has been given a tenure of two years as Secretary of RAW. Goel completes his term on June 30.
A 1988 batch IPS officer of the Chhattisgarh cadre, Sinha had an over two-decade-long stint in the RAW and is presently the number two in the agency. An officer with expertise on neighbourhood countries, he was looking after the Operations Wing of the agency before being promoted.
Sinha is taking over as the new head of RAW at a time Pakistan is facing trouble within and Khalistanis are using every trick to fan Sikh extremism from abroad.
An alumnus of Stephen's College in Delhi, he has served in Jammu and Kashmir, north-eastern states, as well as in foreign countries.
Goel, an expert on matters related to Jammu and Kashmir, was appointed RAW chief in June 2019 for two years and was given two one-year extensions. He is also believed to have played a key role in the planning and execution of the surgical strike in Pakistan's Balakot in February 2019.