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Rajasthan govt completes promotion process of 59 IAS officers, to release list by Dec 31

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LO Bureau
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Rajasthan's employees' welfare

The New Year is going to prove a happy year for the careers of as many as 59 IAS officers, with the state government having already readied itself for their promotion before the new year dawns. According to reliable sources, the promotion process has been completed by the Chief Secretary and the Department of Personnel, and the official orders are expected by December 31.

Two senior IAS officers, Ajitabh Sharma and Alok Gupta, both from the 1996 batch, are likely to be promoted to Additional Chief Secretary. They are, currently, serving as Principal Secretaries.

Two others, KK Pathak and Naveen Jain, of the 2001 batch, will be moving up to Principal Secretary rank. Though KK Pathak is currently posted at the Centre, he will get a pro forma promotion.

10 IAS officers from the 2010 batch, who will become secretaries after promotion, include Jitendra Soni, Inderjeet Singh, Neha Giri, Vishwamohan Sharma, Kanhaiyalal Swami, Nalini Kathotia, Rajendra Vijay, Pragya Kevalramani, Prakash Rajpurohit, and Mahaveer Prasad. As Prakash Rajpurohit and Inderjeet Singh are on central deputation, they will get a pro forma promotion. All of these officers will be promoted from junior to Selection Pay Scale.

Similarly, 22 IAS officers from the 2013 batch are Ashish Gupta, Nathmal Didel, Namrata Vrishni, Kanaram, Anshdeep, Alok Ranjan, Nagikya Gohen, Arvind Poshwal, Pradeep K. Gawande, Mahaveer Prasad Meena, Khajan Singh, ML Chauhan, Dr. Rashmi Sharma, LN Mantri, Iqbal Khan, Kalpana Agarwal, Manish Arora, Pushpa Satyani, Shruti Bhardwaj, Arun Kumar Purohit, Mukul Sharma, and Ajay Singh Rathore. They will be promoted from junior to Selection Pay Scale.

Among these, Ashish Gupta and Anshdeep are posted on the central deputation and therefore will receive a pro forma promotion.

Similarly, among the 10 IAS officers from the 2017 batch who will be promoted are Utsav Kaushal, Gaurav Saini, Shweta Chauhan, Avdhesh Meena, Devendra Kumar, Sushil Kumar, Akshay Godara, Srinidhi BT, Saumya Jha, and Mahendra Khagrawat.

12 IAS officers from the 2022 batch, who will be promoted from Junior to Senior Pay Scale, include Yaksh Chaudhary, Pritam Kumar, Yatharth Shekhar, Anshu Priya, Saksham Goyal, Divyansh Singh, Shraddha Gome, Mohit Kasania, Bhaisare Shubham Ashok, Sonika Kumari, Shrestha Shri, and Charu, who will be promoted to the Senior Pay Scale.

If IAS officers heading districts are promoted, the government will have to give them postings elsewhere. Currently, about 10 districts are being commanded by IAS officers, who are going to be promoted. They are Jalore Collector Pradeep K. Gawande, Sikar’s Mukul Sharma, Salumber’s Avdhesh Meena, Dausa’s Devendra Kumar, Sawai Madhopur’s Kanaram, Tonk’s Kalpana Agarwal, Jhalawar’s Ajay Singh Rathore, Nagaur’s Arun Kumar Purohit, Chittorgarh’s Alok Ranjan, and Pali’s Laxmi Narayan Mantri.

Apart from it, a large-scale reshuffle is also expected in the first week of January, with transfers from the secretariat to districts. 10 districts will have new collectors after the promotion of current incumbents.

Among those who are likely to be transferred are Krishna Kunal and Praveen Gupta. The IAS officers, who have been working in the same position in the secretariat for a long time, may also be transferred. Secretary of the School Education Department, Krishna Kunal, may be transferred.

Similarly, ACS of the Public Works Department, Praveen Gupta, may also be transferred. Praveen Gupta may be given the UDH department. There is talk that the principal secretary of the UDH department, Debashish Prusty, may be transferred too.

Going by the talk in the secretariat corridors, the Personnel department will release the promotion list by December 31. If that happens, it is likely that the transfer list of IAS and IPS officers may come in the first week of January.

CAT stays expiry of Haryana govt’s selection list of 2021 for promotion to IAS

By
LO Bureau
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IPS induction process

In an interim order, the Chandigarh Bench of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) has stayed the expiry of the selection list for the year 2021 for promotion of State Civil Services (SCS) officers to the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) in Haryana. The stay will continue till the next date of hearing on January 6, 2026. The selection list for promotion to IAS is to expire on December 31.

The tribunal also directed the respondents to file their reply by the next date. Any modification in or continuation of this stay would be considered after the next date of hearing.

The tribunal’s ruling came on a petition filed by the Haryana State Services officer, Kamlesh Kumar Bhadoo, whose name had been provisionally included in the list for promotion to the IAS. Bhadoo moved the tribunal for an interim order in a bid to ensure that the selection list did not lapse before the matter was adjudicated.

The CAT noted that the operation and effect of the impugned chargesheet dated June 30, 2023, had been stayed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court. It was further submitted that no charge had been framed by the trial court to date.

In view of these submissions, the tribunal ordered the stay on expiry till the next date of hearing.

Bhadoo has challenged the Haryana Government’s decision not to grant him a regular promotion to the IAS and instead include his name only on a provisional basis in the selection lists from 2020 to 2022. The list had been prepared during the Selection Committee meeting held on July 14, 2025.

The state government is said to have taken this decision due to an FIR registered against Bhadoo by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) at Hisar. As the ACB is yet to file a final report in the FIR, the govt cited it as the reason for treating his candidature as provisional, despite the fact that no charges have been framed against him.

Bhadoo contended that once the High Court had stayed the operation of the chargesheet, even the final report could not be treated as pending against him.

Against this background, Bhadoo sought the tribunal’s directions for inclusion of his name unconditionally in the selection lists from 2020 to 2024 for promotion of SCS officers to the IAS in the Haryana cadre.

The tribunal will take up the matter for hearing on January 6, 2026.

SEBI Clears NHAI’s Raajmarg Infra Investment Trust for Public InvIT Launch

By
LO Bureau
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NHAI Logo

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has secured approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for its sponsored Raajmarg Infra Investment Trust (RIIT) to function as an Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT), giving a fresh push to the authority’s asset monetization programme.

The public InvIT has been designed to unlock value from operational national highway assets while offering a stable, long-term investment avenue, with a primary focus on retail and domestic investors. The move is aimed at expanding public participation in the development of India’s national highway infrastructure.

Earlier, NHAI had set up Raajmarg Infra Investment Managers Private Limited (RIIMPL) as the investment manager for RIIT. The company has been structured as a joint initiative with equity participation from several leading banks and financial institutions, including State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, NaBFID, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finserv Ventures Limited, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, IDBI Bank, IndusInd Bank and Yes Bank.

NRVVMK Rajendra Kumar, Member (Finance) of NHAI, will serve as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (additional charge) of the investment manager company.

Welcoming SEBI’s approval, NHAI Chairman Santosh Kumar Yadav said the clearance marks an important milestone in widening public ownership of national highway assets. He noted that the leadership team at RIIMPL brings strong professional expertise and is well placed to take the initiative forward while creating sustainable long-term investment opportunities. He added that the approval aligns with NHAI’s broader asset monetization strategy and will further support the strengthening of the country’s national highway network.

With the launch of RIIT, NHAI expects deeper domestic investor participation and faster expansion of highway infrastructure, reinforcing the role of public investment in national development.

Also Read: SEBI grants in-principle approval to NHAI’s Raajmarg InvIT for asset monetisation

Also Read: NHAI Launches RIIMPL to Steer Public InvIT Initiative

Tamil Nadu govt promotes 25 IAS officers; 7 elevated to Additional Chief Secretary rank

By
LO Bureau
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The Tamil Nadu government on Wednesday issued promotion orders for Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers across multiple batches, upgrading officers to higher ranks and grades. All promotions will come into effect from January 1, 2026, and three separate government orders to this effect were issued on Wednesday.

As part of the exercise, seven IAS officers from the 1995 batch, who are currently serving in the rank of Principal Secretary, have been promoted to the Chief Secretary grade. Following their promotion, they will be re-designated as Additional Chief Secretaries from January 1, 2026.

The officers promoted to the rank of Additional Chief Secretary (Chief Secretary grade) are M A Siddique, Principal/Managing Director, Chennai Metro Rail Limited; R Jaya, Principal Secretary-cum-Commissioner, Department of Economics and Statistics; Dr P Senthilkumar, Principal Secretary, Health and Family Welfare Department; Sandhya Venugopal Sharma, Principal Secretary-cum-Chairperson, Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation; T Udhayachandran, Principal Secretary, Finance Department; Hitesh Kumar S Makwana, Surveyor General of India, Dehradun, who has been granted proforma promotion; and Dr B Chandra Mohan, Principal Secretary, School Education Department.

In another order, six IAS officers from the 2002 batch have been promoted from the rank of Secretary to Principal Secretary. These promotions will also take effect from January 1, 2026. The officers elevated to the rank of Principal Secretary are Archana Patnaik, Chief Electoral Officer and Secretary, Public (Elections) Department; Sigy Thomas Vaidhyan, Commissioner, Disaster Management; C Samayamoorthy, Secretary-II to the Chief Minister; Reeta Harish Thakkar, Secretary, Public and Rehabilitation Department; and Jayashree Muralidharan, Secretary, Social Welfare and Women Empowerment Department.

Similarly, twelve IAS officers from the 2010 batch have been promoted to the Super Time Scale. The officers promoted include R Lalitha, Commissioner of Textiles, Chennai; Praveen P Nair, currently on central deputation as Private Secretary to the Union Education Minister, who has been granted proforma promotion; Shankar Lal Kumawat, on central deputation as Director in the Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance; Dr Subodh Kumar, on central deputation as Director in the Ministry of Ayush; Ajay Yadav, Managing Director, Tamil Nadu Cements Corporation Limited; Rashmi Siddharth Zagade, Senior Collector, Chennai district; R Kannan, Secretary, State Human Rights Commission, Chennai; S Natarajan, Additional Commissioner (RA), Revenue Administration; A Sivagnanam, Chief Executive Officer, Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority; L Nirmalraj, Commissioner of Industries and Director of Industries and Commerce; S A Raman, Commissioner of Labour, Chennai; and A Annadurai, Managing Director, Tamil Nadu Civil Supplies Corporation.

Know all about Anu Garg—Odisha’s first woman Chief Secretary-designate

By
LO Bureau
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Anu Garg IAS

The Odisha government issued a notification naming senior IAS officer Anu Garg (IAS:1991:OR) as its next Chief Secretary on Wednesday. With this appointment Garg secures a place in the bureaucratic history of the state as the first woman Chief Secretary of Odisha.

The General Administration & Public Grievance (GA & PG) Department of the Odisha government issued a notification in this connection. Garg was selected for this post, superseding at least two other senior IAS officers.

She will take charge on January 1, 2026, succeeding Manoj Ahuja (IAS:1989:OR), who is retiring on December 31.

Garg is currently posted as a Development Commissioner and Secretary of the Planning and Convergence Department with the additional charge of Additional Chief Secretary of the Water Resources Department.

A 1969-born bureaucrat, Garg holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the prestigious Lady Shri Ram College of Delhi University, a master’s degree in Sociology from Lucknow University, and a master’s in Public Health from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, USA.

After becoming an IAS officer at the young age of 22, this 1991-batch officer brings with her a wealth of administrative experience. Becoming Odisha’s first woman Chief Secretary is not the only feather in her cap; she scripted history in February 2023 by becoming the first woman to be appointed as the Development Commissioner, the second-highest-ranked bureaucrat in the state administration.

Before becoming the Development Commissioner, she served as Principal Secretary in the Departments of Labour and ESI and Women & Child Development under the Odisha government.

During the initial phase of her career, between 1992 and 2003, Garg served in various districts in various capacities, including Collector and District Magistrate, Additional District Magistrate, and Sub-divisional Magistrate.

Her career as a bureaucrat got extensive exposure after her posting at the central level, where she served in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) as Joint Secretary. She also worked in the Ministry of Textiles and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in the capacity of Joint Secretary.

Garg is credited with playing a crucial role in taking several flagship schemes to the grassroots level, including Subhadra Yojana, the new input subsidy scheme, and health insurance card initiatives. Her role in implementing policy decisions into on-ground execution has been considered a major strength.

Besides being Odisha’s first woman Chief Secretary, Garg also becomes the 47th civil servant overall to hold this post.

Gujarat govt’s faux pas turns into déjà vu for IAS Mohammad Shahid

By
LO Bureau
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Appointment of civic bodies Administrators

A faux pas by the Gujarat government makes an IAS officer have a feeling of déjà vu. It all began on Tuesday when the state govt ordered the transfer of 26 senior IAS officers, only to modify it the very next day. The transfer order of IAS officer Mohammad Shahid (IAS:1998:GJ), issued on Dec 23, was modified with a fresh transfer the very next day, on Dec 24.

The interesting part of this faux pas is that this is the second time Shahid has been transferred twice from the same department within days of a reshuffle.

On Dec 23, Shahid was transferred from the Social Justice and Empowerment Department to the Tribal Development Department, replacing Shahmeena Hussain (IAS:1997:GJ), who held the post in additional charge.

On Dec 24, Shahid was transferred from the Social Justice and Empowerment Department to Cottage and Rural Industries as Commissioner, including the charge as Principal Secretary, Cottage and Rural Industries, Industries and Mines Department.

So, now after this abrupt change, Hussain will continue to hold the additional charge of the post of Principal Secretary, Tribal Development Department, until further orders.

A similar incident had taken place in July 2018, when three IAS officers had been re-transferred within a week of their transfers on July 12, 2018.

Sources close to this development had revealed it was the “side effect” of a critical detail that the government had reportedly “overlooked” in Shahid’s case. He was transferred on July 12, 2018, along with 20 other IAS officers, from the post of Commissioner of Fisheries to Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Gujarat Maritime Board, replacing Ajay Bhadoo (IAS:1999:GJ). But he was posted back to his original department as Principal Secretary, Agriculture, Farmers Welfare and Co-operation Department, an additional post he was holding.

That time it was ascribed to his perceived proximity to former Congress Chief Minister of Uttarakhand Harish Rawat.

After a few months of Harish Rawat’s taking over as the CM in February 2014, Shahid was sent on an inter-cadre deputation from Gujarat to Uttarakhand, where he served as private secretary to CM Rawat. Even before this appointment, he had also served as the personal secretary to Rawat when he was the Union Minister for Water Resources in the then UPA government. Later Shahid was forcibly relieved from Uttarakhand and sent on central deputation only to be repatriated to his home cadre—Gujarat—in August 2015.

But the Gujarat government seems to have not been briefed properly about this case history.

Delhi to host 3-day National Conference of Chief Secretaries; PM Modi to chair

By
LO Bureau
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CAPF Officers' Conference

The national capital city of Delhi is going to host a three-day National Conference of Chief Secretaries this week. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will chair this conference, to be held between Dec 26 and 28.

This fifth National Conference of Chief Secretaries is being organized with the purpose of streamlining and consolidating coordination between the Centre and the state.

According to government sources, apart from chief secretaries, several other officials, including young District Collectors and Magistrates from all states and Union Territories, as well as several Union Ministers, are expected to attend the conference.

The agenda of this conference is to enhance partnership between the Centre and the states.

A government official believes it will be a significant step towards further strengthening the cooperation between the Centre and state governments.

ACC approves re-designation of five 2012-batch officers to Director level

By
LO Bureau
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Kartavya Bhawan

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet on Tuesday approved the re-designation of five officers from the 2012 batch of different All India and Central Services to the post of Director. According to the approval, the re-designation will come into effect from January 1, 2026. All five officers are currently serving at the level of Deputy Secretary in various ministries and departments of the Government of India.

The officers whose posts have been re-designated include Tamanna Sinha (IES:2012), serving in the Central Vigilance Commission; Bhuvnesh Pratap Singh (IAS:2012:JH), posted in the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade; Parthasarathy Bhaskar Devarakonda (IRS-C&IT:2012), working in the Cabinet Secretariat; Shekhar Srivastava (ISS:2012), serving in the Ministry of Corporate Affairs; and Siva Shankar Bandi (IDAS:2012), posted in the Central Vigilance Commission.

Amit Kumar’s post as Minister’s Private Secretary re-designated to Director level

By
LO Bureau
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Amit Kumar IAS

The post held by Amit Kumar (IAS:2012:BH), who is currently serving at the level of Deputy Secretary as Private Secretary to the Union Minister for Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal, has been re-designated to the Director level.

According to an order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training on Tuesday (December 23, 2025), the competent authority has approved the re-designation of the post with effect from January 1, 2026, or from the date of assumption of charge of the re-designated post, whichever is later.

The order specifies that the re-designated tenure will be valid up to August 20, 2029, or on a co-terminus basis with the Minister, or until he ceases to function as Private Secretary to the Minister, or until further orders, whichever occurs earlier.

Amit Kumar commenced his central deputation on August 21, 2024.

Ajay Bartwal’s post in Cabinet Secretariat re-designated as Director

By
LO Bureau
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Cabinet Secretariat

The post held by Ajay Bartwal (IRAS:2012), who is currently serving as Deputy Secretary in the Cabinet Secretariat (SR), has been re-designated to the level of Director.

According to an order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training on Wednesday (December 24, 2025), the competent authority has approved the upgradation of the post to Director level under the Central Staffing Scheme. The re-designation will take effect from January 1, 2026, or from the date he assumes charge of the re-designated post, whichever is later.

The order further states that the tenure of the re-designated post will continue up to February 21, 2029, completing the total admissible central deputation tenure of five years.

Ajay Bartwal began his central deputation on February 22, 2024.

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