Himmat, highest ranking Sikh civil servant in Malaysia, retires

| Putrajaya, Malaysia | 10 Dec 2015 | Asia Samachar |

Himmat Singh, the most senior ranking Sikh in the Malaysian civil service, retires today. He held the position of the secretary general of the Ministry of Plantation Industries and Commodities at the point of retirement.

Himmat, 60, still sits as a commission member of the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD), a position he first took on when he was at the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) in the Prime Minister’s Department.

In the same statement, Ali announced the appointments and transfers of four Public Service Department officers from among Administrative and Diplomatic Officers (PTD) to hold senior posts in the public service effective yesterday.

Finance Ministry Treasury Deputy Secretary-General (Policy) Dr Sundaran Annamalai, 57, takes over Himmat’s role at the ministry.

Himmat was born in Georgetown, Penang and began his civil service career in 1981 with the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment.

In 1994, he was transferred to the Regional Economics and Environment Section of the Economic Planning Unit (EPU) in the Prime Minister’s Department, and also served as the Director of the Environment and Natural Resources Section, the Social Services Section and the Infrastructure Section of the EPU.

In January 2010, he became the Deputy Director General of the Economic Planning Unit and in October 2011, he was appointed as the Secretary General of the Ministry of Works until July 2014, when he was appointed as the Secretary General of the Ministry of Plantation and Industries and Commodities.