Know Your Diplomat: India's new ambassador to Germany Vijay Keshav Gokhale

Gokhale during a book launch

Vijay Keshav Gokhale, a 1981 batch officer of Indian Foreign Service, is India’s new ambassador to Germany. The post has been lying vacant since Indian ambassador to Germany Sujatha Singh took over as India’s foreign secretary on August 1. Gokhale, 54, has been…
India’s ambassador to Malaysia since January 2010. An MA in history from the University of Delhi, Gokhale became a career diplomat in 1981, and served in Indian missions in Hong Kong, Hanoi, Beijing and New York. In the South Block, he held the posts of director (China and East Asia) and then joint secretary (East Asia). He is well versed with China affairs. Gokhale had also served as deputy secretary (finance).
He is married to Mrs Vandana Gokhale, and they have one son.
Meanwhile, the government has appointed Ravi Bangar, a 1982 batch IFS officer, currently additional secretary in ministry of external affairs, as India’s next high commissioner to the Republic of Cyprus. Cyprus, an island nation in Mediterranean Sea with Egypt, Syria and Turkey as neighbours, houses just 8.6 lakh people. But it’s strategic from India’s point of view. Indian companies such as BHEL, TATA Projects, Bharati Ship Yard etc. have been participating in various Cypriot projects. Also, what actually makes this island nation more important than its peers is the fact that Cyprus is the fifth largest FDI investor in India. Between April 2000 and February 2012, the cumulative investment flows to India from Cyprus were $6.24 billion, with investments in construction and real estate activities being the highest.
The government on Tuesday appointed Dr AVS Ramesh Chandra, a 1989 batch IFS and current Deputy Chief of Mission in Indian embassy of Ankara, as High Commissioner of India to Uganda.