Guwahati | Dr Varnali Deka has become the first woman IAS officer from Assam to be empanelled for appointment as Joint Secretary to the Government of India, marking a significant milestone in the state’s civil services history.

Deka, a 2009-batch IAS officer, was serving as Commissioner and Secretary of Assam’s General Administration Department before proceeding on deputation to the Centre in August 2025.

During her tenure in Assam, Deka served as Deputy Commissioner in five districts – Barpeta, Golaghat, Goalpara, Kokrajhar and Nalbari. She also held several key administrative positions, including Vice Chairman and CEO of the Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority, Managing Director of the Assam Skill Development Mission and Assam State Rural Livelihood Mission, and Executive Director of Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan.

She has also served as Secretary in the Health, Urban Development, Skill, Empowerment and Entrepreneurship Development departments, besides serving as Secretary of the Bodoland Territorial Council. Deka was also Director of the Assam and Bodoland Administrative Staff College.

Before entering the civil services, Deka worked in the corporate sector with Tata Consultancy Services’ Global Consulting Practice and ANZ Bank as a business analyst and engineer. She initially secured Rank 82 in the UPSC examination for the Indian Police Service and later secured Rank 16 for the Indian Administrative Service.

An accomplished academic, Deka holds a BTech in Computer Science, an MBA in Systems and Operations with a minor in Finance, an LLB and a PhD in Commerce. She studied at Delhi Public School, R.K. Puram, St Mary’s School, Guwahati, RV College of Engineering in Bengaluru and IIT Bombay.

She was also the state topper in the HSLC examination and an NTSE scholar. Besides academics and administration, Deka is a Visharad in Indian classical music. Her administrative career has been marked by several national-level recognitions. She received the Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Public Service for innovation in an aspirational district and has won the National e-Governance Award twice.

She has also received the National Water Award twice for innovations in water management, the Election Commission of India’s Best DEO Award for innovative election management practices and the Chief Minister’s Karmashree Award.

Several of her initiatives have received recognition from institutions including the United Nations Development Programme, NITI Aayog and the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances, with some being recommended as replicable best practices.

Her One District One Product initiative in Kokrajhar was selected by the Capacity Building Commission under its Innovations in Public Administration programme for submission to the Prime Minister’s Public Human Resources Council. Her work on Jan Bhagidari in Poshan Kokrajhar has also been developed into a case study for the Amrit Gyan Kosh/iGOT Karmayogi platform.

Deka’s achievements also include the L.V. Reddy Memorial Award for Best Officer Trainee (North-East) for the 2009 batch at the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration in Mussoorie. Her empanelment as Joint Secretary places her among the senior civil servants eligible for important policymaking and administrative responsibilities at the Centre.