Poonam Kishore Saxena, a 1975 batch IRS officer, has been appointed as Chairman of Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the Finance Ministry said today.

She was holding the additional charge of the post after incumbent chairman Laxman Das retired last month.

Prior to the appointment, Saxena worked as Director General (Investigation) in Jaipur for three years. She has worked in Lucknow, Meerut, Ahmedabad, Jaipur and Delhi in various areas like Administration of Income Tax, Appeals and Recovery.

Saxena, a PhD in Economics, has ensured fast tracking of various projects, CBDT said in a statement.

CBDT is responsible for administration of direct tax laws through the Income Tax Department and also provides essential inputs for policy and planning of direct taxes.