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Vinod K Jacob is an Indian diplomat belonging to the year 2000 batch of the Indian Foreign Service. He was ranked fifth at the Indian Civil Services Exam in the year 2000.

Education

During his college days at Dr. Ambedkar Government Law College in Chennai, Vinod K Jacob seems to have contributed essays, including one for the H. M. Seervai Constitutional Law Essay Competition, 1998 and Pace Law School Institute of International Commercial Law in 1999. He is an alumnus of Padma Seshadri Bala Bhavan Senior Secondary School, Chennai, Tamil Nadu and had spoken at the First Memorial Anniversary of the founder of the school, Dr. Smt. Rajalakshmi Parthasarathy.

Personal

Vinod K Jacob is a Chinese language speaker who is reasonably fluent in Hindi, Tamil and Malyalam. He is married to an Indian diplomat, Ms. Namgya C Khampa and has two children. He appears to be a Syrian Orthodox Christian.

Career

Vinod K. Jacob belongs to the 2000 Batch of the Indian Foreign Service. While attending the 68th Foundation Course at LBSNAA (Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration), Vinod K Jacob was given the award for the Best All Round Trainee scoring 755 out of 900 marks.

He has served in Beijing and New York (Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations). At Headquarters, he has served as Desk Officer on China as well as Director (Deputy Director General level) in the division dealing with Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran. As Under Secretary (China), Jacob had been involved in helping a TN youth in China get a reprieve from death row on charges of possessing narcotics.

Vinod K Jacob was a member of the Indian delegation to the UN Security Council during the period from 1 August 2012 to 31 July 2013. He was an alternate representative from the Indian delegation to the UN Security Council in 2011. As a First Secretary at the Permanent Mission of India in New York, Vinod K Jacob delivered statements on the Revitalization of the General Assembly on 10 May 2012 and 1 June 2012 as well as on Agenda Item 52-“United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (Unrwa)” at the Fourth Committee of the 67th Session of the United Nations General Assembly on 7 November 2012. Jacob said that General Assembly resolutions 51/241 of 22 August 1997 and 60/286 of 9 October 2006 which outline in detail proposals on improving the process of selection and appointment of the Secretary-General must be fully and faithfully implemented. The practice established by GA Resolution 11 (1) can be modified to allow for the Council to send a panel of names that the Assembly could choose from as against a single  nomination. Additionally, if  the  member-states  attach  high importance to the role and responsibilities of the Assembly, we see no reason why the matter should not be “decided by a two-thirds majority” in terms of Article 18 as against the one with a simple majority requirement in Resolution 11 (1).

After the Haiti earthquake, Vinod Jacob told the delegates at the UN headquarters in April 2010 that India, on its part, will be sending two police units to beef up security, and will also contribute part of the two million dollars for the reconstruction of a community health centre.

Vinod K Jacob, Counsellor (Pol) in Indian Embassy in Beijing was the nodal point for celebrations to mark 60th anniversary of Panchsheel organized by Government of PRC along with India and Myanmar on 28 June 2014. Senior Indian diplomat Vinod K. Jacob felicitated the Tamil Service on the golden jubilee of the China Radio International in Beijing in August 2013. Vinod K Jacob, Counsellor [Political] gave remarks at the Inaugural Session of the 14th Russia-India-China Trilateral Conference in Beijing, 1 June 2015 in which he stated that the results achieved during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to China in May 2015 were indeed impressive: 24 agreements signed on the government-to-government side, 26 MoUs on the business-to-business side and two joint statements, including one on climate change. He went on to observe, “Let me quote some statistics to put matters in perspective. In terms of government-to-government documents when Indian Prime Ministers visited China, there were a total of nine (9) signed by the two sides during the visit of Prime Minister to China in June 2003, eleven (11) during the visit of Prime Minister to China in January 2008 and nine (9) during the visit of Prime Minister to China in October 2013. Bilaterally speaking, the previous high was thirteen (13) during the visit of Chinese President to India in November 2006.”

Since October 2017, Mr. Jacob is Head of Economic Diplomacy & States Division. He also has experience on UN matters, including elections. Most recently, he was campaign coordinator for re-election of Judge Dalveer Bhandari to the International Court of Justice in 2017. During this period, he seems to have become promoted as Joint Secretary in charge of UN matters.

Vinod K Jacob spoke at the first edition of the Deccan Dialogue held at the Hyderabad campus of the Indian School of Business on 6 May 2018 where he participated in the dialogue on “Taking Economic Diplomacy to the grassroots for strengthening development partnership.” He was also involved in the convening of the Third Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank  in India in 2018 as well as the curtain raiser  earlier in the year. He was a member of the Task Force on Artificial Intelligence established by the Ministry of Commerce of India in 2018.

He briefed Indian Heads of Missions to Africa in an event organized by the CII on 29 June, 2018 in New Delhi. In his remarks during the visit of Deputy Minister for Economic Development of Russia, Mr. Alexey Gruzdev at the interactive meeting held in Delhi on 19 March 2018 with Indian industry representatives organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), Vinod K Jacob pointed out that the areas that needed to be addressed for giving an impetus to bilateral trade were connectivity, engagement between Russian regions and Indian states, collaboration in the energy sector, high-tech cooperation and cooperation in defence and security.

Vinod K Jacob served on the Board of Directors of WAPCOS in 2018 in his capacity as Joint Secretary [Economic Diplomacy] in the MEA. He was also a member of the Board of Directors of the ITPO in 2018. He served as a member of the Board of Management if the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade in 2018. He was part of the Indian delegation to the First Ministerial Assembly of the International Solar Alliance (ISA)held on 3 October 2018 in Greater Noida.

Vinod K Jacob is an acknowledged expert in negotiations. In May 2018, he reached understanding with China to start formal negotiations on a bilateral social security agreement aimed at protecting Indian professionals and skilled workers abroad. According to a news report, Jacob has dealt with Indian joint statements with China and Pakistan in the past. Deepak Mittal and Vinod Jacob were among the key drafters of the petition for the case concerning Kulbhushan Jadhav at the International Court of Justice.

Vinod K Jacob led a delegation to U Thant House in March 2019 and had an exchange on regional relations and the discussion covered topics such as peace and security, economic development and business and political relations in the region.

On 10 July 2019, Vinod, K Jacob, Joint Secretary, @MEAIndia, in his opening remarks at the India-EU Seminar on sharing of good practices on migration governance highlighted new perspectives and good practices in migration governance, whilst stressing the importance of dialogue necessary to streamline talent mobility along the European Union-India corridor.

Sri Lanka

The Deputy High Commissioner of the Indian High Commission, Mr. Vinod K Jacob made a call on the Secretary to the Ministry of Defence, General (Retd) SHS Kottegoda WWV RWP RSP VSV USP ndc at the Ministry on 20 September 2019. A cordial discussion was held between the Secretary Defence and the Indian Deputy High Commissioner on matters of bilateral importance and mutual relevance during the meeting.

Vinod K Jacob, Deputy High Commissioner, High Commission of India, Colombo inaugurated the 5th edition of Intex South Asia at the Sirimavo Bandaranaike Memorial Exhibition Centre (BMICH) in Colombo, Sri Lanka in December 2019.

On 15 January 2020, Northern Province Governor PSM Charles and the Deputy High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka Vinod K Jacob jointly inaugurated from St Henry’s College, Ilavalai in Jaffna five schools that had been constructed in the Northern Province by grants from the Government of India.

At a special event held at Vellai Oya Estate, Hatton on February 16, 2020 foundation stone for the Indian Housing Project in the estate consisting of 50 houses was laid jointly by Acting High Commissioner of India Mr. Vinod K. Jacob, Sri Lankan Minister of Community Empowerment and Estate Infrastructure Development Hon. Arumugam Thondaman and Minister of Plantation and Export Agriculture Hon. Ramesh Pathirana. These houses are part of the 14,000 houses committed by India in the Plantation Areas for Estate Workers. Foundation Stone for construction of a new Auditorium cum multipurpose building at Thondaman Vocational Training Centre (TVTC), Hatton was also laid the same day. The new building is part of up gradation of the center at a grant assistance of SLR 199 million from the Government of India.

At a special event held at Homadola Estate, Udugama, Galle on 2 March 2020, the foundation stone for the Indian Housing Project in the estate consisting of 50 houses was laid jointly by Acting High Commissioner of India Vinod K. Jacob, Community Empowerment and Estate Infrastructure Development Minister Arumugam Thondaman and Plantation Industries and Export Agriculture Minister Ramesh Pathirana.

Acting High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka Mr. Vinod K. Jacob called on Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka Hon. Dinesh Gunawardena in Colombo on 20 April 2020. During the meeting, Acting High Commissioner briefed the Hon. Foreign Minister on India’s efforts to deal with the COVID 19 pandemic. Hon. Minister also briefed the Acting High Commissioner on steps taken by Sri Lanka to fight the global pandemic.

In May 2020, Indian diplomacy nipped in the bud an avoidable embarrassment about the nation sending troops to help Sri Lanka fight Covid19 epidemic. Given the fact that the Sri Lankan armed forces are involved in the pandemic-fight in full swing almost from day one, and also the history of Indian Peace-Keeping Force (IPKF) fighting the LTTE terror-group on Sri Lankan soil in the late eighties, the prompt clarification by the Indian High Commission (IHC) in Colombo went a long way in assuaging domestic sentiments in the island-nation. Post-clarification on Indian troops, Acting High Commissioner Vinod K. Jacob called on Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena and exchanged information on the respective country’s efforts to fight the pandemic.

Deputy High Commissioner of India in Colombo Vinod Jacob, on 12 May 2020, made a token handover of the fourth consignment of essential medicines and medical items to Minister of Foreign Relations Dinesh Gunawardena, Minister of Health and Indigenous Medical Services Pavithra Wanniarachchi, and Foreign Secretary Ravinatha Aryasinha at the Ministry of Foreign Relations. The consignment, which consists of around 12.5 tonnes of medicines and equipment arrived by a special Indian flight on 8 May 2020 in Sri Lanka, marks Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s initiative to assist the neighboring and partner countries to combat COVID-19 pandemic. Following the symbolic handing over event, the Deputy High Commissioner called on the Foreign Relations Minister for a brief meeting to review the ongoing bilateral cooperation in the fields of politics, trade, tourism, health, and regional affairs.

On July 14, 2020 Deputy High Commissioner Vinod K. Jacob had met and discussed the currency swap arrangement with the Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, Prof. W.D. Lakshman. The Reserve Bank of India signed necessary documents for extending a US$ 400 million currency swap facility to the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. This currency swap arrangement will remain available till November 2022.

The Project Steering Committee (PSC) Meeting for Construction of Surgical Unit to the Batticaloa Teaching Hospital chaired by Deputy High Commissioner Vinod K. Jacob held at the High Commission of India on August 19, 2020. The project worth SLR 262 million is set up as a High Impact Community Development Project (HICDP) in Sri Lanka. The modernisation and improvement of infrastructure for surgeries will benefit the people in and around the Eastern Province.

Clear declaration of ‘India First Security’ policy by Sri Lankan Government is encouraging and reflects a fair assessment of the current state of security cooperation between India and Sri Lanka, the Deputy High Commissioner of India Vinod K Jacob said in his address at the Annual General Meeting of the Sri Lanka India Society in Colombo on 24 September 2020. Vinod K Jacob positively assessed the strong engagement between India and Sri Lanka during the past year including in the context of mutual support in dealing with Covid related challenges. He recalled the smooth coordination in facilitating evacuation flights for stranded nationals in each other's country. The strong support given by the Government of Sri Lanka in repatriation of nearly 700 stranded Indian nationals on board INS Jalashwa in early June was particularly noteworthy.

Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa offered flower tribute to Mahatma Gandhiji at a ceremony held at Temple Trees to mark the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi yesterday which fell on 2 October 2020. Deputy High Commissioner of India Vinod K Jacob represented the High Commissioner, along with other Indian diplomats participated at the event. This Birth Anniversary marked the culmination of two years of celebration of 150th year from the birth of Mahatma Gandhi. After the ceremony, the Prime Minister queried about Mahatma Gandhi's famous visit to Sri Lanka. Deputy High Commissioner Vinod K. Jacob recounted that Mahatma Gandhi had toured Sri Lanka extensively in 1927 from Galle to Point Pedro.

Deputy High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, Vinod K Jacob visited the General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University (KDU) at the invitation of KDU Vice Chancellor Major General Milinda Peiris in October 2020 and held cordial discussions on ongoing and potential areas of collaboration including institutional linkages of KDU with Indian think – tanks and academic institutions, student exchanges and Research and Development.

Deputy High Commissioner of India Vinod K Jacob met Kapila Gunawardena, Secretary, Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs to discuss the implementation of the grant from India for the promotion of Buddhist ties between India and Sri Lanka in October 2020. Jacob said it was a first of its kind grant announcement by India and may be used for the construction/renovation of Buddhist monasteries, capacity development, cultural exchanges, archaeological cooperation, reciprocal exposition of the Buddha’s relics, strengthening engagement of Buddhist scholars and clergy. Gunawardena welcomed the suggestions and stated that the Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs will work towards finalising various projects to utilise the Indian grant. The two sides also discussed other Indian grant projects currently under implementation such as the Kandyan Dancing School being constructed at the Sri Lanka International Buddhist Academy (SIBA) campus in Pallekele, Kandy, and the Jaffna Cultural Centre.

Deputy High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, Vinod K Jacob undertook a two-day visit to Mannar and Jaffna from 7 to 8 December, 2020. He inspected the progress at the ongoing Indian project to construct 144 transit houses for pilgrims at the Mannar Madhu Church and the upgrading of the Thirukeeteshwaram Temple. The former project is scheduled to be completed by September 2021 with an estimated cost of Rs 290 million while in the latter project, the Government of India has completed the restoration of the Mahamandapam and other works at a total cost of more than Rs 320 million. The Deputy High Commissioner also called on the Bishop of Mannar, Dr. Emmanuel Fernando and exchanged views on the potential for development cooperation in the Mannar region.

On 10 December 2020, Deputy High Commissioner Vinod K. Jacob met Anuradha Wijekoon, Secretary Ministry of Youth and Sports and discussed ways to deepen the partnership in Sports and Youth Affairs.

On 5 January 2021, Deputy High Commissioner Vinod K Jacob and Bhadrani Jayawardhana, Secretary, Ministry of Internal Trade, Food Security and Consumer Welfare co-chaired the Project Steering Committee meeting on design, construction and commissioning of the 5000 MT temperature controlled warehouse in Dambulla. Earlier, on 24 December 2020, Deputy High Commissioner and Dr. Kapila Perera, Secretary, Ministry of Education co-chaired the Project Steering Committee meeting on the Project for renovation of 27 schools in the Northern Province under Indian assistance. This meeting was held through virtual mode and also had participation from Secretary, Provincial Ministry of Education, Northern Province Ilangavon. Progress on finalization of the Project for construction of 3200 sanitation units in Batticaloa was achieved during the meeting between Deputy High Commissioner Jacob and A. Senanayake Secretary, State Ministry for Backward Rural Areas Development and Promotion of Domestic Animal Husbandry and Minor Economic Crop Cultivation on 17 December 2020. These projects are in continuation of Government of India’s people-oriented development cooperation partnership with Government of Sri Lanka. India’s overall commitment of development assistance to Sri Lanka stands at a total of around US$ 3.5 billion and among these, US$ 560 million is under grants. India has undertaken more than 70 people-oriented development projects in various fields including health, education, housing, skill development, infrastructure, vocational training among others, all across the country. About, 20 such projects are currently under progress.

Criticism

Vinod K Jacob’s remarks on Sri Lanka’s “India First Security Policy” was criticized in a mainstream Sri Lankan news paper. The author observed, “India’s Deputy High Commissioner in Colombo, Vinod K Jacob has found this ‘encouraging.’ Would India feel encouraged to be still more in-your-face, is that what he means? He could be thinking ‘encouraged by the prospects for better relations,’ but we know that countries love themselves, not others. Others, they use, if they can, and subdue if they cannot.”

An editorial in Gammiris.lk on 27 September 2020 noted, “Deputy Indian High Commissioner Vinod K. Jacob is happy and we are sure his boss High Commissioner Gopal Bagley is happy too. Jacob is encouraged by Sri Lanka’s ‘India First Security Policy.’”