Punjab government announces major IAS reshuffle
In a significant administrative overhaul, nearly three dozen IAS officers in Punjab have been assigned new roles across various departments. This reshuffle is aimed at improving governance and operational efficiency in key sectors.
Mrs. Jaspreet Talwar has been appointed as ACS, Planning, with an additional charge of Taxation, while Krishan Kumar has taken over as Principal Secretary, Water Resources. Veerendra Kumar Meena now serves as Principal Secretary, Social Justice, Empowerment & Minorities, and Vikas Garg assumes the role of Principal Secretary, Housing & Urban Development. Rahul Tiwari has been entrusted with the position of Principal Secretary, Food Civil Supplies & Consumer Affairs, whereas Mrs. Alaknanda Dayal has taken over as Principal Secretary, Employment Generation, Skill Development & Training. Ajit Balaji Joshi has been named Administrative Secretary, Rural Development & Panchayats, and Mrs. Shruti Singh has been designated as Resident Commissioner, Punjab Bhawan, New Delhi, along with additional responsibilities as Administrative Secretary, Technical Education & Industrial Training.
Other key appointments include Dilraj Singh as Administrative Secretary, Parliamentary Affairs, with an additional charge of Health & Family Welfare, and Abhinav as Secretary, Tourism & Cultural Affairs. Amit Dhaka has been assigned as Director, Mahatma Gandhi State Institute of Public Administration, along with overseeing Printing & Stationery and serving as CEO, Punjab Bureau of Investment Promotion. Mrs. Anindita Mitra has been appointed as Secretary, Higher Education & Languages, with additional responsibilities for School Education, while Mohammad Tayyab takes over as Secretary, Horticulture, with an additional charge of Soil & Water Conservation.
Further, Mrs. Neelima has been designated as Chief Executive, Punjab Energy Development Agency, while Varinder Kumar Sharma has been assigned as Secretary-cum-Director, Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer Affairs. Mrs. Gauri Parashar Joshi now serves as Secretary, General Administration Department (GAD) with an additional charge as CEO, State Health Agency. In the agricultural sector, Mrs. Babita has been appointed as Commissioner, Agriculture, and Mrs. Surabhi Malik has taken over as Director, Industries & Commerce, along with the role of Managing Director, Punjab Small Industries Export Corporation.
Meanwhile, Vineet Kumar has been assigned as Special Secretary, Personnel, with an additional charge as MD, Punjab State Warehousing Corporation Limited. Mrs. Baldeep Kaur has been posted as Special Secretary, Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare, while Amit Talwar takes over as MD, Punjab Health System Corporation. Mrs. Hargunjit Kaur assumes responsibility as Special Secretary, Public Works Department (Buildings & Roads), and Rajesh Dhiman has been given the charge of Project Director, World Bank Project, alongside his role as Special Secretary, School Education.
District-level appointments include Moneesh Kumar as Director, Technical Education & Industrial Training, Paramvir Singh as Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Patiala, and Mrs. Palavi as Special Secretary, Water Supply & Sanitation. Uma Shankar Gupta now serves as Director-cum-Special Secretary, Rural Development & Panchayats, while Upkar Singh has been appointed as Special Secretary, Personnel. Ajay Arora has taken over as Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, and Dalwinderjit Singh has been named Deputy Commissioner, Gurdaspur.
Additional postings include Harpreet Singh as Additional Deputy Secretary General, Fatehgarh Sahib, Mrs. Kanchan as Additional Deputy Commissioner, Rural Development, Bathinda, and Ms. Aparna M B as Additional Deputy Commissioner General, Jalandhar. Simarandeep Singh has been appointed as Additional Secretary, Coordination and OSD to Chief Secretary, Punjab, while Nitesh Kumar Jain assumes the role of Chief Administrator, Jalandhar Development Authority. Lastly, Ms. Akshita Gupta has been appointed as Commissioner, Municipal Corporation, Bhagwara.
This extensive reshuffle is expected to enhance administrative efficiency and streamline operations across various government departments in Punjab.
