Belonging to the 2014, 2016, and 2017 batches, these Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers head the district administrations in Mumbai, Hyderabad, Thiruvananthapuram, Chennai, and Imphal East.

The five officers are Aanchal Goyal, Priyanka Ala, Anju K.S., S. Malathi Helen, and Nivedita Lairenlakpam.

Their professional achievements reflect the diversity of experience within the IAS, with their backgrounds spanning urban governance, revenue administration, rural development, social welfare, and public service delivery.

Their educational backgrounds range from engineering and medicine to sociology, public management, and research in botany.

The Secretariat takes a closer look at these officers.

Aanchal Goyal

A 2014-batch IAS officer of the Maharashtra cadre, she is the Collector and District Magistrate of Mumbai City. She assumed the position in March 2025 after her tenure as Additional Municipal Commissioner of the Nagpur Municipal Corporation.

An engineering graduate from Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh, Goyal has developed administrative experience across district administration, municipal governance, and development institutions.

She served as Collector of Parbhani district. She also worked as the Chief Executive Officer of the Ratnagiri Zilla Parishad and held responsibilities in Palghar district as Project Officer-cum-Assistant Collector.

During her tenure at the Nagpur Municipal Corporation, she handled several important departments, including solid waste management, health, education, social welfare, information technology, transportation, property tax, and parks.

Her tenure in Nagpur also involved initiatives on digitisation of municipal operations, monitoring of garbage collection vehicles, healthcare facilities, property tax collection, and urban infrastructure.

As Mumbai City Collector, she is responsible for a range of important administrative functions, including revenue administration, land matters, election management, disaster response, and coordination among government departments. Her appointment places a relatively young 2014-batch officer at the helm of one of Maharashtra’s most prominent district administrations.

Priyanka Ala 

A 2016-batch IAS officer of the Telangana cadre, she currently serves as the District Collector of Hyderabad. Her appointment came as part of a major administrative reshuffle undertaken by the Telangana government in April 2026, involving the transfer of several IAS officers and district collectors.

A medical graduate by qualification, Ala represents the growing presence of professionals from diverse educational backgrounds in India’s higher civil services. She began her administrative career with assignments in the Telangana government and served as Assistant Collector at Bhongir.

Subsequently, she worked in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) where she was Additional Commissioner and Zonal Commissioner of the Serilingampally Zone.

In July 2023, she was appointed Collector of Bhadradri Kothagudem district. In that position, she highlighted the importance of coordinated administration and focused attention on the development needs of the district, which has a substantial tribal population. She subsequently served as Secretary of the Telangana State Public Service Commission before being appointed Hyderabad District Collector.

Ala’s experience in municipal administration, district governance, and public service recruitment gives her exposure to different dimensions of government functioning. As Hyderabad Collector, she oversees district-level administration in Telangana’s capital, including revenue matters, public grievances, election-related responsibilities and coordination of government welfare and development programmes.

Anju K.S.

A 2017-batch IAS officer of the Kerala cadre, she assumed charge as District Collector of Thiruvananthapuram on 1 October 2026. Before that, she was serving as Director of the Kerala State Lotteries Department.

Anju holds a B. Tech degree in Instrumentation and a postgraduate qualification in Public Management. A native of Palakkad district, she has built her administrative career through assignments in several important departments of the Kerala government.

Her previous responsibilities include serving as Sub-Collector of Perinthalmanna and District Development Commissioner of Alappuzha. She has also worked as Staff Officer to the Chief Secretary.

In addition, she served as Managing Director of the Kerala State Backward Classes Development Corporation and held departmental responsibilities as Director of Scheduled Caste Development and Director of Agriculture Development and Farmers' Welfare.

Her experience across social welfare, agriculture, public sector administration, and district development provides her with a broad administrative background.

One of the significant responsibilities associated with her new assignment is overseeing rehabilitation activities connected with the Vizhinjam Port project.

Thiruvananthapuram, being Kerala’s capital, presents a complex administrative environment involving urban development, public infrastructure, revenue administration, and coordination with state government departments.

S. Malathi Helen

A 2017-batch IAS officer of the Tamil Nadu cadre, she is the District Collector of Chennai.

According to the Chennai district administration’s official record, she assumed charge on 1 June 2026, succeeding Rashmi Siddharth Zagade. Her educational background includes postgraduate qualifications in sociology, with an MA and an MPhil. She has also been associated with the Loyola Institute of Business Administration.

Her professional background reflects an interest in social development and community-oriented initiatives. Her publicly available professional profile also mentions involvement with collaborative water-management initiatives and engagement with different stakeholders.

Her appointment to Chennai is particularly significant because the district is among Tamil Nadu’s most important administrative and economic centres.

The Chennai Collectorate is responsible for a wide range of functions, including revenue administration, land acquisition, disaster management, elections, public grievances, and the implementation of government welfare programmes.

The district also faces major urban governance challenges, including flooding, infrastructure pressures, population density, and coordination of essential public services.

Nivedita Lairenlakpam

A 2014-batch IAS officer of the Manipur cadre, she is the Deputy Commissioner of Imphal East district. Unlike some of the other officers in this list, her entry into the IAS was through promotion from the State Civil Services. Her academic background includes a PhD in botany.

She has been serving as Deputy Commissioner of Imphal East since May 2025. The district administration’s official website lists her as the head of the district administration.

Imphal East is an important administrative district in Manipur, with its headquarters at Porompat in the Imphal urban area.

As Deputy Commissioner, she is responsible for overseeing district administration, revenue-related matters, and implementation of government schemes, besides public service delivery and coordination among different government departments.

Her appointment is particularly noteworthy in the context of Manipur, where district administration has an important role in maintaining public order, coordinating relief, and rehabilitation activities and ensuring the delivery of government assistance.

Women IAS Officers

These officers demonstrate how women are increasingly occupying important positions in India’s administrative machinery.

Their appointments are a reminder that administering districts is not merely about a designation, it also involves managing public institutions, addressing citizens’ grievances, coordinating development programmes, and ensuring that government policies reach people at the grassroots.

The picture in the Central administration so far, however, is different.

The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) Annual Report for 2024-25, which is the latest government data on the matter, shows that 110 women officers were appointed under the Central Staffing Scheme (CSS), including 38 in senior positions like Secretary, Additional Secretary, and Joint Secretary.

This is low compared with the overall figures: 578 for CSS, including 121 for Secretary, Additional Secretary and Joint Secretary.