Senior IAS officer Punya Salila Srivastava (IAS:1993:AGMUT), currently serving as Secretary, Department of Health and Family Welfare, has been given additional charge of Secretary, Department of Health Research. According to an order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) on Friday (February 27, 2026), the competent authority has approved the assignment of additional charge of the post to her during the period of leave of incumbent Dr Rajiv Bahl from February 28, 2026 to March 9, 2026.
Jeetesh Sharma prematurely repatriated from WDRA to parent Cadre
Jeetesh Sharma (ITS:1998), Director (A&F) in the Warehousing Development and Regulatory Authority (WDRA) under the Department of Food & Public Distribution, has been prematurely repatriated to his parent cadre.
According to an order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) on Thursday (February 26, 2026), the competent authority has approved the proposal of the Department of Food & Public Distribution to repatriate Sharma to his parent cadre with extended cooling-off.
Notably, Jeetesh Sharma was appointed as Director (A&F) in WDRA on April 1, 2022, for a tenure of five years. His term was scheduled to end in April 2027. However, he has been repatriated nearly one year before completing his tenure.
ACC Empanels 28 Senior IAS Officers for Additional Secretary-Level Posts at Centre
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet on Saturday (February 28, 2025) approved the empanelment of 28 IAS senior officers from various batches and cadres for appointment as Additional Secretary or Additional Secretary-equivalent posts at the central government.
The officers empanelled are:
Secretary/Secretary Equivalent posts:
- Dheeraj Sahu (IAS:1996:UP)
- Debasish Prusty (IAS:2000:RJ)
- Lokhande Prashant Sitaram (IAS:2001:AGMUT)
- Mandeep K Bhandari (IAS:2001:AGMUT)
- Sridhar Chiruvolu (IAS:2001:BH)
- Arti Kanwar (IAS:2001:GJ)
- Vijay Nehra (IAS:2001:GJ)
- R Selvam (IAS:2001:HP)
- Pankaj Yadav (IAS:2001:HY)
- Darpan Jain (IAS:2001:KN)
- Nipun Vinayak (IAS:2001:MH)
- Prajakta L Verma (IAS:2001:MH)
- Shrikar Keshav Pardeshi (IAS:2001:MH)
- Vijayalakshmi Prasanna Bidari (IAS:2001:MH)
- Nidhi Mani Tripathi (IAS:2001:MN)
- Dodda Venkata Swamy (IAS:2001:OR)
- Priyank Bharti (IAS:2001:PB)
- Neetu Kumari Prasad (IAS:2001:TG)
Secretary Equivalent posts:
- Anoop Kumar Agrawal (IAS:1993:WB)
- Sarita Chauhan Chand (IAS:1999:AGMUT)
- Bhaskar Jyoti Sharma (IAS:1999:OR)
- Shubha Sarma (IAS:1999:OR)
- Kumar Rahul (IAS:2000:PB)
- Sorabh Babu (IAS:2000:UP)
- Ankita Mishra Bundela (IAS:2001:AGMUT)
- Jujjavarapu Balaji (IAS:2001:AM)
- Siddharth Jain (IAS:2001:AP)
- Santhanagopalan R (IAS:2001:OR)
Telangana suspends IAS officer Arvind Kumar in Formula E case
The Telangana government on Friday (February 27, 2026) suspended senior IAS officer Arvind Kumar (IAS:1991:TG). The action came after the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) gave sanction to the Telangana Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) to prosecute him in the Formula E case.
Arvind Kumar was recently transferred from his post as Special Chief Secretary, Revenue (Disaster Management). He was not given a new posting. He has about eight months left in service and is due to retire in October this year.
This is the first time since the formation of Telangana that a Special Chief Secretary-rank officer has been suspended in a criminal case.
The case relates to his tenure as Special Chief Secretary, Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MA&UD). He is accused of transferring Rs 55 crore to UK-based Formula E Operations (FEO) without following proper procedures for holding the second edition of the race.
The ACB registered the case in December 2024. The complaint was filed by then Principal Secretary (MA&UD) M Dana Kishore. The investigation is still underway.
Also Read: Centre gives sanction to prosecute Telangana IAS Arvind Kumar in Formula-E car race case
ACC Empanels 41 Senior IAS Officers for Secretary-Level Posts at Centre
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) on Saturday (February 28, 2026) approved the empanelment of 41 senior IAS officers from various batches and cadres for appointment as Secretary or Secretary-equivalent in the Government of India.
Secretary/Secretary Equivalent posts:
- Keshav Kumar Pathak (IAS:1990:BH)
- S Gopalakrishnan (IAS:1991:TN)
- Surendra Kumar Bagde (IAS:1993:MH)
- Sanjay Lohiya (IAS:1994:AM)
- Keshav Chandra (IAS:1995:AGMUT)
- Rohit Kansal (IAS:1995:AGMUT)
- D Thara (IAS:1995:GJ)
- Bharat Harbansal Khera (IAS:1995:HP)
- Satendra Singh (IAS:1995:JH)
- TK Anil Kumar (IAS::1995:KN)
- Abhishek Singh (IAS:1995:NL)
- Sushil Kumar Lohani (IAS:1995:OR)
- Dilip Kumar (IAS:1995:PB)
- Jaspreet Talwar (IAS:1995:PB)
- Rajeev Singh Thakur (IAS:1995:RJ)
- Sanjay Kumar (IAS:1995:TG)
- MA Siddique (IAS:1995:TG)
- Ashutosh Jindal (IAS:1995:TR)
- Mritunjay Kumar Narayan (IAS:1995:UP)
- Santosh Kumar Yadav (IAS:1995:UP)
Secretary Equivalent posts:
- Anju Sharma (IAS:1991:GJ)
- Sanjay Gupta (IAS:1991:OR)
- Manisha Verma (IAS:1993:MH)
- Aniruddhe Mukerjee (IAS:1993:MP)
- Alok Kumar II (IAS:1993:UP)
- Dushyant Naria (IAS:1993:WB)
- Alok Shekhar (IAS:1994:PB)
- Leena Johri (IAS:1994:UP)
- Chandra Bhushan Kumar (IAS:1995:AGMUT)
- H Rajesh Prasad (IAS:1995: AGMUT)
- Sajan Singh Yadav (IAS:1995:AGMUT)
- Archana Varma (IAS:1995:AM)
- Shakil P Ahammed (IAS:1995:AM)
- B Rajender (IAS:1995:BH)
- Rawther Dawood Nazeem (IAS:1995:HP)
- M Maheshwar Rao (IAS:1995:KN)
- Radhika Rastogi (IAS:1995:MH)
- Hitesh Kumar S Makwana (IAS:1995:TN)
- R Jaya (IAS:1995:TN)
- Bhuvnesh Kumar (IAS:1995:UP)
- Sanjay Prasad (IAS:1995:UP)
Ex-Bengal DGP Rajiv Kumar slated to represent state in Rajya Sabha
Out of the four candidates the Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) has announced for the Rajya Sabha elections, the most surprising is the name of former IPS officer Rajiv Kumar (IPS:1989:WB). A known Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee loyalist, Kumar retired from the post of DGP on January 31 this year.
Five seats from West Bengal are falling vacant in the Rajya Sabha, elections for which are to be held on March 16.
Besides Rajiv Kumar, Minister of State Babul Supriyo, senior Supreme Court advocate Menaka Guruswamy, and actress Koel Mallick have been given tickets.
An IIT Roorkee alumnus, Kumar has been an upright police officer who did not defy his master’s orders, for which he is often criticized. He played a crucial role in major controversies that dogged Bengal’s politics and administration. He headed the investigation as the Special Task Force (STF) chief in the Saradha chit fund scam that surfaced in 2013 and played a key role in the arrest of the main accused, Sudipta Sen. The case was later transferred to the CBI.
Kumar’s proximity to CM Banerjee came to the public domain when, in 2019, just before the Lok Sabha elections, the CBI raided his home in connection with the Saradha scam. CM Mamata Banerjee staged a sit-in protest at Kolkata’s Esplanade, which made national headlines. This unprecedented 70-hour sit-in was ended only after the Supreme Court stayed Kumar’s arrest and directed him to cooperate with the investigation. During that period, it was believed within the TMC that Rajeev Kumar served as an “institutional shield” for the government and the Chief Minister.
But the loyalty part is overemphasized if a retired police officer is to be believed. According to him, Rajiv Kumar played a key role in the anti-terrorism cell, and his expertise in electronic surveillance was renowned throughout the country.
While in the Kolkata Police Special Task Force, he helped apprehend terrorists, bust counterfeit currency rackets, and played a key role in the arrest of major criminals like Aftab Ansari.
Kumar is also known for playing a key role in anti-Maoist operations in the state.
It is widely believed that the Bengal CM has chosen Kumar to put across a political message that the TMC does not forget officers who stand by CM Mamata Banerjee during times of crisis. The timing of this messaging is crucial, as Bengal is going to assembly polls within months.
IRS Sameer Wankhede might face disciplinary proceeding as Delhi HC sets aside CAT order
A new twist has surfaced in the case of Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer Sameer Wankhede, with the Delhi High Court admitting the Central government’s petition challenging the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) order giving relief to the officer by quashing disciplinary action against him.
A Division Bench comprising justices Anil Kshetarpal and Amit Mahajan set aside the CAT order on Friday and cleared the way for disciplinary action against Wankhede.
The CAT, in its order issued on January 19, 2026, had slammed the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) for acting with malice and vendetta against Wankhede and restrained it from proceeding further on the basis of the charge memorandum.
Wankhede had approached the tribunal after disciplinary proceedings were initiated against him following his exit from the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in Mumbai amid controversy over the investigation of the Cordelia cruise drug case.
The disciplinary action against Wankhede stemmed from allegations linked to the Cordelia cruise drug bust, which had led to actor Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan’s arrest in 2021.
The CBIC had initiated the disciplinary proceedings against Wankhede following allegations linked to a preliminary inquiry conducted by a Special Enquiry Team (SET). The SET had examined complaints against him following his role in the high-profile 2021 Cordelia cruise drug seizure case while serving with the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB).
It needs to be recalled that noted actor Shah Rukh Khan’s son, Aryan Khan, had been arrested by the NCB in that case.
Wankhede’s contention was that the findings of the preliminary inquiry could not be used as the basis for formal disciplinary action because the CBIC had not followed due process. He added that the charge memorandum issued to him was arbitrary, legally unsustainable and motivated by malice.
In their plea before the High Court, the Union government and CBIC argued that the Tribunal exceeded its jurisdiction by interfering at the stage of issuance of charges.
They also objected to the CAT attributing malice and motive to the government’s actions.
IAS G Sai Prasad takes over as new Chief Secretary of Andhra Pradesh
Senior Andhra Pradesh cadre IAS officer G. Sai Prasad (IAS:1991:AP) is assuming charge as the new boss of the state administration. According to official orders, he is supposed to take over the reins of the new Chief Secretary at 11.33 am on February 28 at the state secretariat in Amaravati.
Prasad is taking over the charge from incumbent Chief Secretary K. Vijayanand (IAS:1992:AP), whose tenure had been extended for three months in Nov 2025 and is expiring on February 28. The state government had notified the appointment of Sai Prasad as the new CS in the same order, which contained incumbent Vijayanand’s extension.
Sai Prasad was serving as Special Chief Secretary of the Water Resources Department and Ex-Officio Special Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister before taking over as the Chief Secretary.
Sai Prasad has been known for his pro-poor leanings during his bureaucratic career and has headed major power utilities, including AP Transco and AP CPDCL, and served as vice-chairman of the AP Housing Board.
During his deputation to the Centre, Sai Prasad worked as Joint Secretary in the Union Ministry of Power and later served as Secretary and Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister, CMD of AP Solar Power Corporation, CCLA, and Special Chief Secretary of the Water Resources Department.
RECPDCL hands over Umred Power Transmission SPV to MSETCL
REC Power Development and Consultancy Limited (RECPDCL), a wholly owned subsidiary of REC Limited under the Ministry of Power, has handed over the project-specific Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) of the InSTS Transmission Project of Maharashtra—Umred Power Transmission Limited—to Maharashtra State Electricity Transmission Company Limited (MSETCL). The handover took place on February 26, 2026.
MSETCL emerged as the successful bidder through the Tariff-Based Competitive Bidding (TBCB) process conducted by RECPDCL, which acted as the Bid Process Coordinator, for development of the transmission project on a Build, Own, Operate and Transfer (BOOT) basis.
The SPV was formally handed over by Vijay Kulkarni, Senior General Manager and Head of Department (T&D), RECPDCL, to Vineeta Shriwani, Company Secretary, and Amit Naik, Chief Engineer (TBCB), MSETCL, in the presence of senior officials of RECPDCL, MSETCL and Maharashtra STU. The implementation period of the project is 24 months.
The scheme broadly includes the establishment of a 400/220/132 kV substation at Umred; a 220 kV double circuit transmission line of around 51 km from Umred (New) to Additional Buttibori (Proposed); a 132 kV double circuit line of around 38 km from Kolari (Existing) to Umred (New); and LILO of various lines at 400/220/132 kV levels, along with other associated works.
Ex-IAS Awanish Awasthi’s tenure as UP CM’s advisor extended fourth time
Former UP cadre IAS officer Awanish Awasthi’s tenure as advisor to UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has been extended for the fourth time till February 28, 2027. He has been on uninterrupted extensions since 2023. Awasthi’s closeness with CM Yogi can be gauged from the fact that he was accompanying the CM on his five-day tour of Singapore and Japan to lure investors and just returned to Lucknow on Friday only to be greeted with another extension in a row.
This latest extension is being held in the bureaucratic circles as a Holi gift from CM Yogi to one of his most trusted lieutenants.
Awasthi had been awarded a third extension for a year in 2025 following the conclusion of the Maha Kumbh. His tenure was due to expire on Feb 28, 2026.
Even during Yogi Adityanath’s first term as UP Chief Minister, Awanish Awasthi served as Principal Secretary in the crucial Home and Information Departments.
It needs special mention that a temporary post of administrative advisor was created to accommodate Awasthi after his retirement in 2022. After his first term ended on Feb 28, 2023, it was temporarily extended from March 1, 2023, to February 29, 2024. His term was then extended a second time, from March 1, 2024, to February 28, 2025. Then the third time from March 1, 2025, to Feb 28, 2026. And this is the fourth one, from March 1, 2026, to Feb 28, 2027. And the counting goes on….
However, Awasthi is not alone on Yogi’s advisory board. Rather, he is one of four advisors to the UP CM. The three others are GN Singh, KV Raju, and DP Singh.
Awasthi’s close proximity to Yogi is hardly a secret, as he has been known as one of the most trusted advisors to the CM, and this latest extension is considered crucial as he will be serving as Yogi’s advisor in the run-up to the assembly elections scheduled to be held in 2027.
An IIT Kanpur alumnus and 1987 batch IAS, Awanish Awasthi retired from the post of Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) to the Chief Minister, Home and Confidentiality, and Civil Aviation on August 31, 2022.
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