By Gurbir Singh:
Muktesh Kumar Pardeshi, former Ambassador of India to Mexico, has taken over as the new High Commissioner of India to New Zealand.
Muktesh Pardeshi, a 1991 batch Indian Foreign Services (IFS) officer, formally presented his credentials to Dame Patsy Reddy, Governor-General of New Zealand on July 29.
The new envoy’s appointment was earlier confirmed by the India’s Ministry of External Affairs in February this year. The previous High Commissioner, Sanjiv Kohli’s three-year term in New Zealand ended recently.
Pardeshi’s diplomatic career spans over 28 years, and he has served in various positions within India’s Ministry of External Affairs and served overseas as well. His last posting was in Mexico.
While serving earlier as Joint Secretary and Chief Passport Officer, he won accolades for successfully leading the Passport Seva Project which won, among others, e-INDIA Governance Award 2013.
Muktesh Pardeshi, who joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1991, holds a Bachelor of Arts from Hindu College, Delhi and a Masters from the Delhi School of Economics.
He is married to Rakhi Pardeshi, and they have two daughters.
From just about 2,000 in 1951, the number of Indians in New Zealand has now grown almost to 200,000. The Indian High Commission has been in existence in New Zealand for over 50 years, and over this period, the relationship between these two countries have also grown considerably.
– from NewsViews
