New Delhi/Jeddah: Shri Vipul (IFS: 1998), currently serving as Ambassador of India to the State of Qatar, has been appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The announcement was made today by the Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi. He is expected to take up his new assignment shortly.
A seasoned diplomat with more than two decades of experience in the Indian Foreign Service, Shri Vipul has been serving as India’s Ambassador to Qatar since August 2023. He presented his credentials to Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on August 17, 2023, and has since played a key role in strengthening bilateral ties between India and Qatar.
An alumnus of Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Shri Vipulgraduated in Mechanical Engineering in 1994. He later earned a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Indian School of Business as part of the PGP Class of 2008.
Since joining the Indian Foreign Service in 1998, Shri Vipul has held several important assignments in Indian diplomatic missions abroad, including postings in Cairo, Colombo, Geneva and Dubai. During his diplomatic career, he has handled a broad range of portfolios covering political and commercial relations, development cooperation, disarmament, international security, and media affairs.
At the Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi, he served as Director and later Joint Secretary in the Office of India’s External Affairs Minister between 2014 and 2017. He subsequently served as Consul General of India in Dubai from 2017 to 2020, where he worked closely with the large Indian community in the United Arab Emirates and contributed to strengthening bilateral engagement.
From 2020 to 2023, Shri Vipul served as Joint Secretary (Gulf Division) in the Ministry of External Affairs, overseeing India’s diplomatic relations with countries across the Gulf region. His extensive experience in Gulf affairs is expected to be an asset in his new role in Saudi Arabia.
During his tenure in Qatar, Shri Vipul focused on expanding cooperation in trade, energy, culture, and people-to-people exchanges. He consistently emphasized the importance of high-level engagement and strategic partnerships in further strengthening India-Qatar relations.
His appointment to Saudi Arabia comes at a time when India and Saudi Arabia continue to deepen their strategic partnership across multiple sectors, including energy, trade, investment, technology, defence cooperation, and cultural exchanges. Diplomatic observers view his appointment as a reflection of India’s commitment to further enhancing its robust and growing relationship with the Kingdom.
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