Thiruvananthapuram | A cabinet meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, decided to appoint 1991-batch IAS officer Jayathilak to the top bureaucratic post.

The decision was made in light of the current Chief Secretary Sarada Muraleedharan's retirement on April 30, a CMO statement said here on Wednesday.

Jayathilak is currently serving as the Additional Chief Secretary in the Finance Department.

A Kerala cadre IAS officer, he is expected to serve in the top post until his retirement next year.

Among other decisions, the cabinet also entrusted Water Resources Minister Roshy Augustine to represent the state at the funeral of Pope Francis.

The cabinet also decided to elevate the Kerala School of Mathematics to a Centre of Excellence, modelled after the Institute of Mathematical Sciences in Chennai, the statement added.