Jumbo reshuffle in Gujarat

Gandhinagar: As expected, the state government carried out its first large scale reshuffle in the state administration with transfers of over 100 IAS officials from district to secretariat level.

Filled with several surprises and shocks, the reshuffle bears the imprint of Delhi.

The changes effected in the top bureaucracy include new ACS (Home), new ACS (Agriculture), new ACS (industries and mines) and principal secretary of environment and forest, climate change, urban development, higher and technical education and many others.

Similarly, major districts like Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Rajkot, Jamnagar, Kutch and Banaskantha have got new collectors while Rajkot, Vadodara and Gandhinagar have got even new municipal commissioners.

The most surprising posting is that of SJ Haider, who has been shifted as ACS, Industries and mines, a key department which oversees industrial development, industrial policy and investments besides mining and minerals in the state.

He will now be chairman of GMDC and GIDC.

In GMDC, Roopwant Singh continues as MD while his additional charge of Commissioner of Geology and Mines has been handed over to Dhaval Patel, who moved from Ahmedabad where he was collector, where he has not even completed one year.

In GIDC, Rahul Gupta has expectedly made the new Chief, while Gandhinagar Municipal Commissioner Sandeep Sagale has been appointed as Industries Commissioner.

Haider is 1991 batch IAS while Rahul Gupta is from 2004 batch and Sagale belongs to 2007 and now promoted to secretary level.

In another important change is that of Mukesh Puri, who has been shifted as ACS (Home) and will hold the additional charge of MD, Sardar Sarovar besides MD of GSFC.

Puri is 1988 batch IAS and is scheduled to retire in January 2024 and therefore he was expected to continue as ACS (agriculture) till his superannuation.

From GSPC, Sanjiv Kumar has been shifted to Environment and Forest as principal secretary but he would hold additional charge climate change as well as crucial urban development.

Mukesh Kumar has been moved from Urban Development to Higher and technical education, a rather light weight assignment compared to urban development.

It is interesting that the government has not touched Dhananjay Dwivedi and Vinod Rao, who both have completed three years in their present assignments in water supply and primary education respectively.

In less than two months, Milind Toravane has been moved from rural development to coveted GSPC where he would also be chief of GSPL and Gujarat Gas.

Toravane was earlier Commissioner of Commercial Tax but was abruptly shifted to the rural development. He is 2000 batch IAS of Gujarat cadre.

There are still several vacancies like urban development, commercial tax, rural development, GMB, GSFC and GAD, suggesting that there would be one more round of transfers.

At the district level, Gandhinagar Collector DK Praveena has been shifted to Ahmedabad. She has earlier served as collector of Sabarkantha and Kutch. Prabhav Joshi has been shifted from Uttar Gujarat Vij Company to Rajkot as collector while Kutch Collector Dilip Rana has been sent to Vadodara as municipal commissioner.