The photograph of Vikas Swarup, the external affairs ministry's new spokesperson, now adorns the Twitter account of the ever-busy handle @MEAIndia.

The handle, which till late Saturday afternoon had the photograph of popular spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin, was replaced with Swarup's, who formally took over on Saturday.

Vikas Swarup (left) shaking hands with Syed Akbaruddin. Picture courtesy: Twitter account @MEAIndia

"Thank you Akbar!!! A new inning begins for me. And some big shoes to fill," was Swarup's first tweet, with a photo of the two officials shaking hands.

The Twitter handle, which has 8,486 tweets, and 313,000 followers, has become a handy tool for information on the latest news and developments with regard to India's foreign policy and the prime minister's tours and speeches, among others.

Akbaruddin, who takes over as the chief coordinator of India-Africa Forum Summit, made the Twitter handle extremely popular - tweeting photographs and latest events regarding any diplomatic visit, ministry event and news regarding India.

The MEA website too has undergone vast changes under Akbaruddin, with latest developments in various missions and posts available at a click.

Among the last few tweets posted by Akbaruddin on the Twitter handle before Swarup formally took over are of both the officials seated with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on board the special aircraft, with Modi directing his instruction at Swarup. Akbaruddin also clicked a selfie with Modi.