Mandeep Bhandari, 2001-batch IAS officer, named CBSE chairperson

Mandeep Bhandari, a 2001-batch IAS officer of the AGMUT cadre, has been appointed chairperson of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE). The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet issued the notification on Friday, September 25, 2026.

Bhandari brings a varied administrative record spanning Jammu and Kashmir and central government departments. An MBBS degree holder, he served as Joint Secretary (Drugs) in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Immediately before the CBSE posting, he was principal secretary to the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, having worked at the Governor's Office in Jammu since March 2023. While in the Union Territory, he also held additional charge as chief executive officer of the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board.

His association with shrine administration runs longer. He earlier completed an extended tenure of more than eight years as additional CEO of the Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, managing operations in Katra, Jammu. In October 2023, he was appointed an additional director on the board of Jammu and Kashmir Bank.

Bhandari's earlier roles include private secretary to the Minister of Human Resource Development, deputy commissioner and district magistrate in Leh and Jammu, secretary in the Power Development Department, and sub-divisional magistrate in Budgam.

The appointment comes as the board contends with two pressing issues. The implementation of the onscreen marking (OSM) system for Class 12 board examinations earlier this year drew controversy, and the board's IT infrastructure came under scrutiny after ethical hackers breached its web portals and accessed sensitive student data.