Amid improving ties with Ottawa, the government on Thursday named seasoned diplomat Dinesh K Patnaik as India’s High Commissioner to Canada.
A 1990-batch IFS officer, Patnaik is currently serving as India’s Ambassador to Spain.
The decision to restore full bilateral diplomatic ties was taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Canadian counterpart Mark Carney when they met in June on the sidelines of the G-7 Summit.
Relations between the two nations suffered a major blow when the then Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged the involvement of Indian agents in the killing of Khalistan activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in 2023. New Delhi termed the charge as absurd and decided to downgrade ties with Canada.
A seasoned diplomat with more than three decades of experience, Patnaik is among India’s senior-most career diplomats. He has served in various Indian missions, including as the Deputy High Commissioner in the United Kingdom. He has also worked at key divisions in the Ministry of External Affairs.
Patnaik’s appointment comes days after Canada named Jeff David as Consul General in Mumbai, its first diplomatic appointment to India since the downturn in bilateral ties.