Deepak Sandhu named media advisor to prime minister

New Delhi, Dec 3 (IANS) Deepak Sandhu, principal director general of the Press Information Bureau (PIB) in the ministry of information and broadcasting, has been named the media advisor to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

A 1971 batch officer of Indian Information Service and a Pearson Fellow, Sandhu takes charge of her new assignment Thursday, according to an official statement. She will hold the position of a secretary, government of India.

The post of the media advisor to the prime minister fell vacant after professor-turned-journalist Sanjaya Baru left for Singapore on a teaching assignment.

Uma Kant Mishra, the director general with the Directorate of Audio Visual Publicity (DAVP), takes over as the next head the Press Information Bureau.

During her 37-year career, Sandhu has served as the director general of news with All India Radio, additional director general and head of Doordarshan's news channel, and director of the Directorate of Film Festivals.

She has also been the spokesperson for the ministries of finance, commerce and health.