Jyotindra Nath Dixit

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Jyotindra Nath Dixit bigraphy, stories - Indian diplomat

Jyotindra Nath Dixit : biography

08 January 1936 – 03 January 2005

Jyotindra Nath Dixit (January 8, 1936 – January 3, 2005) was an Indian diplomat, who as served as Foreign Secretary (1991–1994), the top bureaucrat in the Ministry of External Affairs. At the time of his death he was the National Security Advisor to the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and is most remembered for his role as a negotiator in disputes with Pakistan and China. The Independent, 5 January 2005.. By Gopal Gandhi, The Hindu, Jan 5, 2005. New York Times, January 9, 2005. VOA News, By Anjana Pasricha. New Delhi, 3 January 2005.

Awards and Honours

India’s second highest civilian award, the Padma Vibhushan, was posthumously conferred on J.N. Dixit in 2005.

Early life and education

Born in Chennai, then known as Madras, to famous Malayali writer Munshi Paramu Pillai and Retnamayi Devi. He got his surname, Dixit, from his stepfather Sitaram Dixit, a freedom fighter and journalist.

He did his schooling in Central India, Rajasthan and Delhi. thereafter he did B.A. Honors Degree in Philosophy, Economics and Political Science the Zakir Husain College (University of Delhi) (1952 Batch), Indian Express, July 05, 2003. then he did his Master’s in International Law and International Relations from Delhi University, and pursued studies for Doctoral Degree at the Indian School of International Studies, now part of Jawaharlal Nehru University.

Works

  • Self in Autumn, 1982 (collection of poems)
  • Anatomy of a Flawed Inheritance: A Survey of Indo–Pak Relations 1970–94, Konark Publishers, 1995
  • My South Block Years, UBS publishers, 1996
  • Assignment Colombo, Konark Publishers, 1997.
  • Across Borders: Fifty Years of India’s Foreign Policy, PICUS Publishers. 1998.
  • Liberation and Beyond: Indo-Bangladesh Relations 1971-99, Konark Publishers. 1999.
  • An Afghom: Diary-Zahir Shah to Taliban, Konark Publishers, 2000.
  • Indian Foreign Policies and its Neighbours, Gyan Books, New Delhi, 2001. ISBN 81-212-0726-6.
  • India’s Foreign Policy—challenge Of Terrorism Fashioning Interstate Equations, by Gyan Books, 2003. ISBN 81-212-0785-1
  • External Affairs. Roli Books, 2003. ISBN 81-7436-264-9.
  • Indian Foreign Service: History And Challenge. Konark Publishers, 2005. ISBN 81-220-0694-9.

Career

He joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1958, and served in Vienna, Austria, became India’s first Ambassador to Bangladesh (1971–74) after its liberation. Subsequently, he served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassies in Tokyo and Washington, followed by Ambassador in Chile, Mexico, Japan, Australia, Afghanistan (1980–85); High Commissioner Sri Lanka (1985–89) and Pakistan (1989–91). Was Chief administrator of Indian aid in Bhutan.

He later served as the Indian Foreign Secretary from 1991 and ultimately retired from Government service in 1994. He was also a representative of India to the UN, UNIDO, UNESCO, ILO and Non-Aligned Movement (NAM). He was a member of the first National Security Advisory Board, He was also the author of several books. He was the High Commissioner in Colombo in 1987 when India signed an accord with the LTTE and deployed of the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) to the Tamil area in the island nation at the height of ethnic crisis.

He succeeded to the post of the National Security Advisor in 2004. Financial Express, May 27, 2004. And his columns on international and regional affairs, appeared regularly in various publications including Outlook and Indian Express, and remained a visiting lecturer at many educational institutions. Financial Express, Jan 04, 2005.

J.N. Dixit, died on 3 January 2005, in New Delhi, after suffering a heart attack. Mr J.N Dixit was the husband of the late Smt.Vijaya Lakshmi Sundaram (DIXIT). He became the first National Security Advisor who died in office. The Times of India, 3 January 2005. Outlook (magazine), Mar 28, 2005.