Shake-Up in Gujarat Bureaucracy: P. Bharathi Takes Over DST

Senior IAS officer of the 1996 batch, Mona Khandhar, has now been transferred to the Food and Civil Supplies Department. In her place, P. Bharathi, who was serving as Special Commissioner of Taxation, has been appointed as the new Principal Secretary of the Science and Technology Department.

Additionally, Ramesh Chandra Meena, who was the Principal Secretary of the Food and Civil Supplies Department, has also been transferred and given full-time charge of the Ports and Transport Department, where he was previously holding additional charge.

It is being discussed that certain changes introduced in the New IT Policy launched by the state government in 2022 had adversely impacted several beneficiaries, and related complaints had reached the Chief Minister’s Office. The DST is a crucial department responsible for shaping policies on space tech, GCC, electronics, semiconductors, new IT & TES sectors, telecom infrastructure, biotechnology, and Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy — making it a highly sensitive and strategic area.

This reshuffle has been made with the intention of strengthening the functioning of the Science and Technology Department ahead of the Mini Vibrant Summit scheduled later this year. With P. Bharathi now taking charge of DST, a new appointment is likely to be made in the taxation department to fill her previous role.