Nagma Mallick, woman IFS officer with Kerala roots, appointed India’s ambassador to Japan

Nagma Mohamed Mallick, a Woman IFS officer with Kerala roots, is set to take charge as India’s next ambassador to Japan. Currently serving as India’s ambassador to Poland, she will soon assume her new role.

Though she grew up in Delhi, Mallick has always carried her Kasaragod roots with pride. Mallick comes from a well-known family in Kasaragod and Mangaluru. Her father, Mohammad Habibullah, is the brother of noted Kannada writer Sara Aboobacker. Another uncle, Lieutenant P Mohammed Hasheem, was martyred at 23 during the 1965 India-Pakistan war. In his honour, a street in Kasaragod’s Thalangara bears his name. Mallick’s grandfather, Puthiyapura Ahmed, was among the first Muslim lawyers practising in Kasaragod from the 1930s to 1970.
She holds a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature and a Master’s in Sociology. Fluent in English, French, Hindi, Urdu and Malayalam, she is equally passionate about Indian classical dance, music, literature, fitness, and nutrition.

She is married to Delhi-based lawyer Fareed Inam Mallick, and the couple has a son and a daughter.

Journey in diplomacy

Mallick joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1991. She started her diplomatic career in Paris, working in the Indian Embassy and at UNESCO. In Delhi, she served as Desk Officer in the West Europe Division, on the personal staff of Prime Minister I.K. Gujral, and later became the first woman Deputy Chief of Protocol (Ceremonial).

She then moved to India’s missions in Nepal and Sri Lanka as First Secretary and Counsellor. Back in Delhi, she served as Deputy Spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs and Director in the Eurasia Division, handling India’s ties with Russia and CIS countries. From 2010 to 2012, she was Deputy Chief of Mission in Thailand.

Mallick was Ambassador to Tunisia (2012–2015) and High Commissioner to Brunei Darussalam (2015–2018). She then headed the Policy Planning Division (2019–2020) and served as Additional Secretary (Africa), overseeing relations with Eastern and Southern African nations. Since September 2021, she has been India’s Ambassador to Poland.