India Tuesday named its Ambassador to China Nirupama Rao as the country's next Foreign Secretary, said Ministry of External Affairs sources.

She will replace incumbent Shiv Shankar Menon who will retire on July 31 after an eventful three-year stint as the top diplomat, the sources said seeking anonymity.

A career diplomat, 58-year-old Rao had served as the Indian envoy to Sri Lanka and the country's first woman spokesperson prior to her posting in Beijing as Ambassador in October 2006.

She had also served in the Indian Missions in Washington and Moscow besides having a stint in the Ministry of External Affairs as Joint Secretary for East Asia.

Rao was born on 6 Dec., 1950. After obtaining a Master's Degree in English Literature from Marathwada University in Maharashtra, she joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1973.

She is married to Sudhakar Rao, a senior civil servant and member of the Indian Administrative Service. The couple have two sons, aged 26 and 16.

Source: Xinhua