Punjab govt sends revised panels of bureaucrats to Chandigarh Admin for deputation

In order to overcome bureaucratic crunch, the Chandigarh Administration has sought recommendations of officers from the Punjab government, following which the Punjab govt sent panels of four IAS officers and six PCS officers to it for deputation. One IAS officer and two PCS officers are to be selected to the UT administration from these panels.

The IAS officers whose names have been forwarded include 2013 batch officers Harpreet Sudan and Amit Talwar and 2014 batch officers Preeti Yadav and Jaspreet Singh. Except Amit Talwar, who was promoted to IAS from the Punjab Civil Services (PCS) cadre, the remaining three—Harpreet Sudan, Preeti Yadav, and Jaspreet Singh—are direct recruits.

Among the four IAS officers proposed, Talwar is the only one with previous experience serving in the Union Territory, holding several key positions, including additional deputy commissioner (ADC) and Director, transport. The other three officers have never served with the Chandigarh administration.

But all four IAS officers have held important administrative assignments in Punjab, including postings as Deputy Commissioners (DCs). Harpreet Sudan and Amit Talwar served as DCs of Amritsar, while Preeti Yadav and Jaspreet Singh served as DCs of Patiala and Jalandhar, respectively.

According to official sources, the Punjab govt forwarded the IAS panel at the request of the Chandigarh administration.

Besides the IAS panel, the Punjab govt has also sent a panel of six PCS officers to the Chandigarh administration to select two officers. Officers nominated in the PCS panel are Avneet Kaur, Avikesh Gupta, Balbir Raj Singh, Ravinder Singh Arora, Inder Pal, and Deepankar Garg.

Sources in the UT administration said as the panel has been officially forwarded, the selection process would take place at the highest level, with the final decision to be taken by Punjab Governor and Chandigarh Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria.

These officers will be scrutinized on several parameters, including work experience, professional image, service conduct, past service record, and other relevant aspects.

The fresh panels were sent after the Chandigarh administration recently returned earlier panels received from Punjab and Haryana, citing anomalies. While Punjab has now sent a revised panel, the Haryana government is yet to send a fresh panel.