Harsh Vardhan Shringla

Harsh Vardhan Shringla
Shringla at UNSC
33rd Foreign Secretary of India
In office 29 January 2020 – 30 April 2022[1]
Prime Minister	Narendra Modi
Minister	S. Jaishankar
Preceded by	Vijay Keshav Gokhale
Succeeded by	Vinay Mohan Kwatra[2]
Ambassador of India to the United States
In office 9 January 2019 – 11 January 2020
Preceded by	Navtej Sarna
Succeeded by	Taranjit Singh Sandhu
High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh
In office January 2016 – January 2019
Preceded by	Pankaj Saran
Succeeded by	Riva Ganguly Das[3][4]
Ambassador of India to Thailand
In office January 2014 – January 2016
Preceded by	Anil Wadhwa
Succeeded by	Bhagwant Singh Bishnoi
Personal details
Born	(1962-05-01) 1 May 1962 (age 62) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Spouse	Hemal Shringla
Children	1
Alma mater	St. Stephen's College, Delhi (BA) Mayo College, Ajmer
Occupation	Diplomat
Website	mea.gov.in/fs.htm

Harsh Vardhan Shringla (born 1 May 1962) is Chief Coordinator for India’s G20 Presidency in 2023. He has previously served as Foreign Secretary of India and India's Ambassador to the United States, High Commissioner to Bangladesh, and Ambassador to Thailand.^[5][6][7][8]

Educational background

Shringla was schooled at Mayo College, Ajmer and received a B.A. from St. Stephen's College, Delhi. He worked in private industry in India prior to joining the Indian Foreign Service (IFS). He since has published papers on conflict prevention, economic diplomacy, the Indian diaspora, and India-Bangladesh relations.^[9]

Diplomatic career

Shringla joined the IFS in 1984 and spent 38 years in the service. He held a variety of positions both in New Delhi, at the headquarters of the Ministry of External Affairs, and abroad at Indian diplomatic missions. He was posted in France (as part of India's Mission to UNESCO), the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations in New York City, Vietnam (at the consulate-general and embassy in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, respectively), Israel, and South Africa (at the consulate-general in Durban).^[10]

Ambassador of India to Thailand

Shringla received his first ambassadorial assignment to the Kingdom of Thailand and served for two years from January 2014 to January 2016. ^[11]

High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh

Shringla served as High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh from January 2016 to January 2019. ^[12] During this period, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh visited India in April 2017, a visit that Shringla helped coordinate. Prime Minister Narendra Modi described her visit as the heralding of a "Sonali Adhyay" or a "Golden Era" in the bilateral ties.^[13] He is also credited for his role as the co-chair of the India-Bangladesh Joint Boundary Working Group,^[14] which finalized India's Land Boundary Agreement with Bangladesh.^[15]

Ambassador of India to the United States

Shringla in 2019 was appointed the Indian Ambassador to the United States. Within two days of his arrival in Washington, D.C., he presented his credentials to U.S. President Donald Trump on 11 January 2019 in a ceremony at The White House.^[16]

He traveled across the U.S. in an effort to become a bridge for people-to-people ties between India and the U.S. He traveled to 21 U.S. states during his one year tenure, making an effort to reach out to students, Americans of Indian-origin, working professionals, and state governments.^[17]

During his time in the U.S., the Howdy Modi event took place in Houston, Texas on 22 September 2019, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S. President Donald Trump jointly addressed a gathering of over 50,000 people, with a plurality of the attendees being of Indian-origin.^[18] The event was the largest rally ever hosted by a foreign leader in the United States, and the first one to be jointly held with a U.S. President. ^[19] Shringla, as India's Ambassador, was heavily involved in the planning of the event.

Foreign Secretary of India

Shringla speaking on GU India Initiative on 23 April 2019, at the Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.

On 29 January 2020, Shringla assumed the charge of Foreign Secretary of India as the 33rd Foreign Secretary. While addressing media ahead of taking charge, Shringla acknowledged the responsibilities and challenges that came with it and added that he would work under the leadership of Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister of India for a more secure and prosperous India.^[20]

As Foreign Secretary of India, he visited Myanmar in December 2021 and emphasized India's interest in seeing Myanmar's return to democracy at the earliest; release of detainees and prisoners; resolution of issues through dialogue and complete cessation of all violence in relation to the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état.^[21]

During his tenure as Foreign Secretary, he dealt with some of the most pressing foreign policy issues namely, fallout of the Covid pandemic, India-China border issues at Ladakh, U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan and military takeover in Myanmar.^{[22] [23]}

On 1 April 2022 he was succeeded by Vinay Mohan Kwatra as the 34th Foreign Secretary of India.^[24] After his superannuation from the Indian Foreign Service, Shringla was appointed Chief G20 Coordinator for India's G20 Presidency in 2023.^[25]

Publications

Shringla has written on a number of topics such as international economy, climate change, preventive diplomacy and India-US bilateral relations, including The United Nations and Conflict Prevention: Balance Between Sovereignty and Action (Indian Journal of International Law)^[26] and Project Granite at the New International Airport in Israel (CUTS International, 2011).^[27]

Shringla has also contributed articles in newspapers and magazines on a diverse range of topics including an Op-ed piece in The New York Times, India Is Building a More Prosperous Kashmir giving the context and objectives of India's decision to abrogate the temporary Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir.^{[28] [29][30]}

Personal life

Shringla is an avid reader and sports enthusiast, with an interest in mountaineering and hockey. He had been on a number of mountain expeditions including to Everest Base Camp, Friendship Peak in Himachal Pradesh. He was a liaison officer for the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra in 1996. He represented St. Stephen's College, Delhi in hockey at inter-college and other tournaments and received College Colors for this.^[10]

Shringla was born in Mumbai, to a Buddhist Sikkimese father and a Hindu mother. His father was also part of the Indian civil service.^[31] He speaks French, Vietnamese and Nepali apart from English and other Indian languages.^[31] He is married to Mrs. Hemal Shringla and has one son.^[10]

Awards and honors

• He was awarded the JTM Gibson Award for Outstanding Alumni by Mayo College, Ajmer in 2017.^[32]
• The ICFAI University, Sikkim bestowed on him a D. Litt Honoris Causa Honorary Doctorate degree on 9 September 2019.^[33]

See also

• Vijay Gokhale
• List of Mayoites
• Dr. S Jaishankar

References

1. "Indian envoy to United States Harsh Vardhan Shringla will be the next Foreign Secretary". The Economics Times.
2. "Vinay Kwatra is new Foreign Secretary, Harsh Shringla coordinator for 2023 G-20". Hindustan Times. 4 April 2022.
3. "Riva Ganguly Das appointed as the next HCI to Bangladesh". Retrieved 24 January 2019.
4. "Riva Ganguly Das Named HCI To Bangladesh". NDTV. Retrieved 24 January 2019.
5. "Vinay Mohan Kwatra will be succeeding Harsh Vardhan Shringla as India's new Foreign Secretary when he retires". Deccan Herald. 4 April 2022. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
6. "Harsh Vardhan Shringla appointed new Foreign Secretary of India". The Times of India. 23 December 2019. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
7. "Harsh Vardhan Shringla appointed new Indian Ambassador to US". Business Line. 20 December 2018. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
8. Harsh V Shringla, India's new Abmassadir to Thailand Ministry of External Affairs of India, 29 October 2013.
9. "Harsh Vardhan Shringla, Indian Ambassador to the United States". Archived from the original on 22 January 2019. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
10. "Harsh V Shringla, Indian Ambassador to the United States". Archived from the original on 22 January 2019. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
11. "Embassy of India in Bangkok". 8 August 2018. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
12. "Harsh Vardhan Shringla, High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh". 7 March 2018. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
13. "ET Analysis: Indo-Bangla relations enjoy golden period". The Economic Times. 8 October 2018. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
14. "Meeting of India-Bangladesh Joint Boundary Working Group". 11 November 2010. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
15. "Harsh Vardhan Shringla is new Indian envoy in Bangladesh". The Economic Times. 18 November 2015. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
16. "Press Release - Ambassador Mr. Harsh Vardhan Shringla presented his Credentials to U. S. President Mr. Donald Trump". 11 January 2019. Retrieved 22 January 2019.
17. "Driving Innovation: Technology and India's Rise as a Global Power". 10 October 2019. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
18. "How Modi weaved magic in Houston". 25 September 2019. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
19. "How Modi Attracted 50000 in Houston". The Washington Post. 29 September 2019. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
20. "Ambassador Shringla Takes Charge As 33rd FS". Business Line. 29 January 2020. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
21. Bhattacherjee, Kallol (24 December 2021). "India seeks early return of democracy in Myanmar". The Hindu.
22. "Despite COVID-19 pandemic, India and UAE continued to work closely together". ANI News. 13 December 2021.
23. "Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla meets EU special envoy for Afghanistan". The Economic Times. 1 December 2021.
24. "Vinay Mohan Kwatra announced as the new foreign secretary". Hindustan Times. 4 April 2022.
25. "Harsh V Shringla was G20 chief coordinator". The Economic Times. 10 April 2022.
26. Shringla, Harsh Vardhan. "The United Nations and Conflict Prevention: Balance Between Sovereignty and Action" (PDF). Indian Journal of International Law. 46 (1): 429–445. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
27. Rana, Kishan S; Chatterjee, Bipul (2011). Economic Diplomacy: India's Experience. Jaipur: CUTS International. pp. 79, 84. ISBN 978-81-8257-139-6.
28. Shringla, Harsh Vardhan (19 September 2019). "India Is Building a More Prosperous Kashmir". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
29. Khan, Imran (30 August 2019). "The World can't Ignore Kashmir. We Are All In Danger". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
30. Shringla, Harsh Vardhan (17 October 2019). "Indian ambassador briefs US lawmakers on Kashmir". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
31. "Foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla has overcome challenges pragmatically". The Indian Express. 29 January 2020. Retrieved 26 November 2020.
32. "Remembering Jack Gibson". 1 January 2017. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
33. "Ambassador Harsh V Shringla's acceptance speech on receiving Honorary Doctorate". 9 September 2019. Retrieved 9 September 2019.

External links

• Bio data of Foreign Secretary – Ministry of External Affairs of India

Diplomatic posts
Preceded by Anil Wadhwa	Indian Ambassador to Thailand 2014–2016	Succeeded by Bhagwant Singh Bishnoi
Preceded by Pankaj Saran	Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh 2016–2019	Succeeded by Riva Ganguly Das
Preceded by Navtej Sarna	Indian Ambassador to the United States 2019–2020	Succeeded by Taranjit Singh Sandhu
Preceded by Vijay Gokhale	Foreign Secretary of India 2020–2022	Succeeded by Vinay Mohan Kwatra