Manoj Kumar Das Set To Take Over As Next Chief Secretary Of Gujarat

According to an official notification issued today by the General Administration Department (GAD), Das, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 1990 batch of the Gujarat cadre, is currently serving as Additional Chief Secretary. He will take over as Chief Secretary with effect from October 31, 2025, the notification added. His tenure as the Chief Secretary will last till December 2026. 

MK Das is currently serving as Additional Chief Secretary. He has served extensively in various positions and departments in the state.

Hailing from Darbhanga in Bihar, MK Das holds a B.Tech (Hons.) degree in Computer Science and Engineering. Das began his career as the Deputy Development Officer in Vadodara and later served as the Collector in several districts. Over the course of his administrative service, he has held key positions, including Municipal Commissioner of Surat and Vadodara, and worked in Departments such as Food & Civil Supplies, Industries & Mines, Revenue, and Ports & Transport. He has also served on various state boards and corporations.

During Vijay Rupani’s tenure as the Chief Minister, Das served as the Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister till September 2021, while holding the additional charge of the Industries and Mines Department. Since August 2024, he has been serving as Additional Chief Secretary in the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO), under Bhupendra Patel’s government.

Notably, MK Das is the only officer in the past two decades to return to the CMO, and will now succeed Pankaj Joshi as the Chief Secretary. His prior experience as the Joint Secretary in the Union Ministry of Home Affairs is said to have contributed to his reappointment to the CMO.

Posts To Fall Vacant

When MK Das assumes charge as the Chief Secretary, the position of the Additional Chief Secretary in the Chief Minister’s Office will fall vacant. Since Das currently holds the additional charge of the Home Department, a new appointment to this crucial post is also expected soon.

Meanwhile, speculation is rife that Pankaj Joshi, a 1999-batch IAS officer, may be assigned a post-retirement position either in the Chief Minister’s Office or in one of the state’s key public sector undertakings.

The administrative reshuffle has triggered a fresh wave of movement within the state bureaucracy. Several departments currently operating under additional charge are expected to get new full-time heads. Moreover, Sunaina Tomar, a 1989-batch IAS officer and Additional Chief Secretary for Higher & Technical Education and General Administration Department, being the senior-most officer, may be appointed to a public enterprise outside the Secretariat. She is due to retire in November 2025.