IAS officer Mandeep Bhandari appointed chairperson of CBSE

Mandeep Bhandari, a 2001-batch IAS officer, has been appointed chairperson of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), as per a notification issued by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet on Friday (September 25, 2026).

Mr. Bhandari, an officer belonging to the AGMUT cadre, has held key leadership and administrative roles across Jammu & Kashmir and Central government departments. He holds an MBBS degree and has previously served as Joint Secretary (Drugs) under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mr. Bhandari’s appointment to the CBSE comes at a crucial time when the board finds itself embroiled in a controversy over the implementation of the onscreen marking (OSM) system for Class 12 board exams earlier this year. The CBSE’s IT system also came under scrutiny when ethical hackers accessed sensitive student data information by breaching its web portals.