New Delhi, June 26 (IANS) The government on Wednesday extended the tenure of NITI Aayog's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Amitabh Kant by two-years till June 30, 2021.

"The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approvede the extension of tenure of Amitabh Kant, CEO, Niti Aayog, for a further period of two years beyond June 30, 2019, i.e. upto June 30, 2021, on the same terms and conditions as approved earlier," the government said in an official release.

Kant, a 1980 batch IAS officer of the Kerala cadre, took charge as the first full-time CEO of the NITI Aayog on February 17, 2016, after his superannuation as Secretary in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT).

He was first given a two-year term, which was later extended by the Appointments Committee till June 30, 2019.

--IANS aks/rv/arm