{{Short description|Indian diplomat}} {{Use Indian English|date=January 2015}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2025}} {{Infobox officeholder |name = Ashok Kantha |office = Former Indian Ambassador to China | order = |predecessor = Subrahmanyam Jaishankar |successor = Vijay Keshav Gokhale | term_end = January 2016 |office2 = Indian High Commissioner to Malaysia |predecessor2 = |office1 = Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka |predecessor1 = |successor1 = Yashvardhan Kumar Sinha |term1 = 2009–13 |term2 = 2007–2009 |successor2 = |birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1955|5|14|df=y}} |birth_place = |occupation = Career Diplomat |term_start = 6 January 2014 }}
'''Ashok Kantha''' or '''Ashok K. Kantha''' is an Indian diplomat and was formerly the Indian Ambassador to the China.<ref name="Embassy of India">{{cite web | url=http://indianembassy.org.cn/DynamicContent.aspx?MenuId=33&SubMenuId=0 | title=Embassy of India, Beijing | date=20 January 2014 | accessdate=30 January 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100116160023/http://www.indianembassy.org.cn/DynamicContent.aspx?MenuId=33&SubMenuId=0 | archive-date=16 January 2010 | url-status=dead }}</ref> He is a 1977 batch Indian Foreign Service officer. He had previously served as Secretary to the Ministry of External Affairs Government of India (2013–2014), High Commissioner of India in Sri Lanka (2009–2013) and as India's High Commissioner to Malaysia (2007–2009).<ref name="mea India">{{cite web | url=http://mea.gov.in/press-releases.htm?dtl/22193/Shri+Ashok+K+Kantha+appointed+as+the+next+Ambassador+of+India+to+the+Peoples+Republic+of+China | title=MEA India | date=12 September 2013 | accessdate=4 January 2015}}</ref> He is currently the Director of the Institute of Chinese Studies, Delhi.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.icsin.org/faculty/show/278|title=ICS- Institute of Chinese Studies : Ashok K. Kantha|website=icsin.org|access-date=2017-05-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170407223125/http://www.icsin.org/faculty/show/278|archive-date=7 April 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref>
==Early life and background== Kantha was born on 14 May 1955.{{Citation needed|date= July 2022}} After graduating in history from Patna University in 1975, he briefly worked as an executive with the State Bank of India. He joined the Indian Foreign Service in July 1977 and studied Chinese Language at Nanyang University, Singapore.<ref name="Embassy of India"/>
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kantha, Ashok}} Category:1955 births Category:Living people Category:People from Bihar Category:Patna University alumni Category:Ambassadors of India to China Category:Indian Foreign Service officers Category:High commissioners of India to Sri Lanka Category:High commissioners of India to Malaysia Category:People of the Sri Lankan civil war Category:Indian Peace Keeping Force
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