National Current Affairs
Vivek Chaturvedi Appointed as CBIC Chief
- 02 Dec 2025
- 3 min read
Why in News?
Vivek Chaturvedi, a 1990-batch IRS (Customs & Indirect Taxes) officer, has been appointed Chairman of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC) by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet.
- He will succeed Sanjay Kumar Agarwal, who superannuated on 30th November 2025.
Key Points
- He has over three decades of experience in customs administration, intelligence, vigilance, data analytics, and risk management.
- He currently serves as a Member (Tax Policy & Legal) on CBIC, and previously joined the Board after succeeding Vivek Ranjan.
- He also brings international exposure from his stint as First Secretary in Brussels (2007–2011) with the Ministry of External Affairs, considered valuable for shaping next-generation customs reforms.
- As Chairman, he becomes a key figure in preparations for the 2026–27 Union Budget, especially for indirect taxes, amid GST rate changes and the need to maintain revenue buoyancy.
- He is expected to lead the next phase of customs modernisation, focusing on digitisation, faster clearances, tighter compliance, and a more technology-driven GST and customs ecosystem.
Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs
- Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (erstwhile Central Board of Excise & Customs) is a part of the Department of Revenue under the Ministry of Finance, Government of India.
- It deals with the tasks of formulation of policy concerning levy and collection of Customs, Central Excise duties, Central Goods & Services Tax and IGST, prevention of smuggling and administration of matters relating to Customs, Central Excise, Central Goods & Services Tax, IGST and Narcotics to the extent under CBIC's purview.
- The Board is the administrative authority for its subordinate organisations, including Custom Houses, Central Excise and Central GST Commissionerates and the Central Revenues Control Laboratory.
