Dr. Kumar currently holds the position of Distinguished Visiting Professor in Department of Management Sciences and the Department of Economic Sciences at the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur.
Dr. Kumar's has served in the technology and policy domains, particularly in areas like electronics manufacturing, mobile production and defence production. Notably, he has played a leadership role in shaping and implementing key decisions for the Government of India's Digital India initiative as Additional secretary to the Government of India.
His career also includes involvement in expanding defense exports and introducing modern warfare capabilities. Dr. Ajay Kumar is the visionary behind the iDEX program,[3] which received the Prime Minister Award for Public Policy in the Innovation Category in 2021. He has been associated in Project 75I, a program focused on developing next-generation submarines and fighters, and laying the groundwork for a thriving marine and aerospace industrial ecosystem in India.
He is an active writer for Indian national dailies and maintains a monthly column in Business Standard titled "Off the Grid."
Ajay Kumar was awarded two separate fellowships by the University of Minnesota and recognized as the distinguished alumnus by the IIT Kanpurfor his professional excellence and nation-building efforts
Kumar was appointed as the Defence Production Secretary by the prime minister-headed Appointments Committee of the Cabinet in November 2017,[7][8][9] he assumed office on 1 December 2017.[4] He served as Defence Production Secretary till 23 August 2019 and was succeeded by Subhash Chandra, an IAS officer of Karnataka cadre (1986 batch).[10]
Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar was assigned additional charge of Secretary, Department of Defence Production on 30th Nov 2021 and served the office till 31 October 2022.[16]
Professional work
Dr Ajay Kumar, the Defence Secretary, commissioned the Indian Coast Guard Ship (ICGS) Saksham, the fifth of the 105-metre Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) class. ICGS Saksham's commissioning has enhanced the ability of the ICG to fulfill the diverse maritime tasks.[17]
In March 2022, he asserted that defence imports have been decreasing continuously, with the focus been given on emerging defence technologies like cyberspace and underwater warfare and enhancing R&D investments aimed at optimizing defence operations and augmenting military efficiency.[18]
He received distinguished Alumni award from Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur in 2019 for the entrepreneurship excellence work.[20] Kumar is credited for the creation of an Electronics Development Fund, which focuses on developing technology start-ups in defence sector.[21]
Ajay Kumar was named one of the top-50 effective bureaucrats in the year 2019 in a survey conducted by Asia Post for adhering to the cardinal principles of civil service that is professionalism, anonymity, integrity and neutrality.[22]
