The dust seems to be settling down in Haryana, where administration has been run without the administrative head for a week now. A directive from the state govt made it clear that ailing Chief Secretary Anurag Rastogi (IAS:1990:HY) will continue to hold the charge even during his medical leave. Rastogi is recuperating in Fortis Hospital in Mohali after undergoing heart bypass surgery on January 9 and will remain on leave until Jan 22.
As such a precarious situation has arisen for the first time in the state when the entire administration was being run in the absence of the administrative head; there was strong speculation that a senior IAS officer might be given the additional charge of the Chief Secretary.
But an official communication clarified on Friday that Rastogi will continue to hold on to the charge of Chief Secretary, thus putting an end to the growing speculations about a possible replacement during his medical leave.
Rastogi’s Officer on Special Duty (OSD) wrote to five IAS officers posted in the Chief Secretary’s office, streamlining the working and the movements of files in the absence of Rastogi. The OSD says that he was directed by the CS that these IAS officers will put up all cases directly to the chief minister in which the CM is the competent authority. Besides, the cases in which the Chief Secretary is the competent authority will be cleared by the respective IAS officers at their own level from January 16 onwards.
According to the communication, a daily list of all pending cases will be prepared and sent to the OSD by 5 pm every day.
The five IAS officers, to whom the communication has been addressed, handle five departments like human resources, general administration, personnel, training and parliamentary affairs, vigilance, and secretariat establishment in the CS office.
Not only this, but these five IAS officers have also been asked not to proceed on leave during his absence. Besides, in case of unavoidable circumstances, prior permission of the chief minister will be a must.
It means that IAS officers posted in the Chief Secretary’s office will be processing files related to their departments and taking decisions that would otherwise have required the Chief Secretary’s approval. The same model is likely to be replicated in the finance and planning departments, whose charge is also held by Rastogi.
PC Meena (IAS:2004:HY), who holds the charge of commissioner and secretary, Human Resources (HR) and General Administration Department (GAD), will deal with all the files related to HR and GAD.
Pankaj (IAS:2009:HY), who is Secretary (Personnel), would dispose of matters related to the Personnel, Training, and Parliamentary Affairs departments.
Similarly, Varsha Khangwal (IAS-HCS) will deal with vigilance matters.
And Samwartak Singh (IAS-HCS) will look after secretariat establishment matters.
Another IAS officer in the CS office, Priyanka Soni (IAS:2012:HY), will look after monitoring and coordination work.
The directive, which is believed to have been issued after consultation with the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO), is aimed at ensuring continuity in administrative decision-making during Rastogi’s absence and putting an end to speculation about any substitution during his illness.
Rastogi was appointed as the Chief Secretary in February 2025 and was granted a one-year extension. He is now due to retire on June 30 this year.
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