Reuters makes appointments for South Asia team

Sanjeev Miglani, South Asia regional news editor for Reuters, made the following announcement to the staff:

I am very pleased to announce several key appointments on the South Asia team.

Miral Fahmy, South Asia Lead Writer  

Miral will join the South Asia Breaking News Hub as its Lead Writer, bringing her vast experience working in the Middle East and Asia and across asset classes. She will write the big stories from Afghanistan to India, kicking off the news cycle as well as working with members of the Hub to deliver fast, clear and well-contexted stories for a global audience.

Miral joined Reuters in Egypt, covering conflicts, economics and politics across the Middle East when Saddam Hussein and Ariel Sharon were still in power. As a correspondent and deputy bureau chief, she reported on and anchored several major stories including the U.S.-led Gulf War and attacks by Osama bin Laden’s al Qaeda. She later swapped combat for catwalks, taking on the role of Asia lifestyle & entertainment editor before joining what is now known as the Global News Desk. On the desk, Miral held various roles including deputy editor-in-chief for political and general news in South Asia. She was also company news desk head and a lead writer for commodities and energy, producing breaking news, trunks and initiative stories from across Asia. Miral joins the South Asia team after training hundreds of journalists as the Asia Pacific Learning Editor. When she’s not trying to remember management acronyms, Miral bakes more cakes than her family can consume in a week and is committed to strength training so that she can one day beat her teenagers at arm wrestling.

Miral will remain based in Singapore and report into me.

Gibran Peshimam, Bureau Chief, Afghanistan and Pakistan

I am delighted to announce Gibran has formally taken over leadership of our Afghanistan news operation in addition to managing our Pakistan coverage. This promotion is a recognition of the role Gibran has been playing in leading our coverage of the worsening humanitarian, economic and security crisis in the turbulent region. He oversaw the reporting of the fall of Kabul last year and was part of the initial team that we sent following the chaotic withdrawal of Western forces. Gibran has since helped us rebuild our coverage of major issues such as a Taliban ban on women’s education, a new Islamic State insurgency and the Taliban’s push for legitimacy and financial stability.  He will be working with colleagues in Kabul, Islamabad and Washington among other centres to further build coverage of some of these big stories. Gibran will also continue to work closely with our security experts to ensure the safety of our people on the ground in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

He will continue to be based in Islamabad and report into me.

Aditya Kalra, Company News Editor, India

Aditya Kalra has been appointed as Company News Editor, India. This recognizes the role that Aditya already plays in spearheading our coverage across much of foreign and Indian companies as well as the regulatory file. In his expanded role he will drive and elevate our entire company news file, working with reporters to deliver scoops, insights, analyses and more. Aditya will collaborate with colleagues in Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi and with editors overseas to cover everything from the big developing stories to the exciting world of Indian start-ups and conglomerates such as Reliance, Tata and Adani. Aditya and his team will also further build coverage of global giants such as Amazon, Mastercard and Tesla that see India as a key growth market but face significant challenges.  This role is critical as we expand our financial and business coverage in India for LSEG Refinitiv.

Aditya will continue to report into me, and he will work closely with the India Financial News Editor, Ira Dugal, and the team in Bangalore to hone our companies coverage, especially at the enterprising end of the file.

Swati Bhat Shetye, Team Lead, Treasury

Swati Bhat Shetye will spearhead daily coverage of forex and fixed income markets for Reuters. Swati has years of experience covering central bank and treasury markets, playing an instrumental role in keeping us ahead on both budget and central bank policy alerts. In her new role as Treasury team lead, Swati will lead a team of reporters focused on deepening and widening daily coverage of Indian fixed income and forex markets and providing market participants with analyses and insights into market dynamics. She will focus on breaking news emerging out of the Reserve Bank of India. She and her team will work closely with colleagues in Delhi to help connect the dots between government and central bank policies along with implications for debt and forex markets.

Swati will report into India Financial News Editor Ira Dugal.

Aftab Ahmed, Team Lead, Government Policy

Aftab Ahmed will lead coverage of Indian government policy for Reuters. Aftab is an intrepid reporter who has since returning to Reuters three years ago regularly broken stories on key economic policy changes, drawing on a network of sources.  Aftab has dominated economic coverage for the past three years, producing a series of exclusives on India’s tangle with Malaysia over palm oil imports in 2020 and breaking stories on the Indian government’s Covid-19 relief packages. Aftab will now lead a team of reporters closely tracking policy changes being considered by the federal government in Delhi, including big moves on investment promotion, trade negotiations, borrowings and taxation. Aftab’s team will work closely with colleagues in Mumbai, aiming to deliver a stream of market-moving stories that cater to the needs of our Refinitiv clients in India and beyond. When he’s not chasing stories, Aftab is happy running long distances, braving Delhi’s traffic and air.

He will also report into Ira Dugal.

Regards,
Sanjeev Miglani

South Asia Regional News Editor