More Reshuffle In Gujarat; Das Gets Revenue, Ashwani Urban Development

Despite the latest reshuffle, several state departments continue to be run on an ad-hoc basis, strongly suggesting the possibility of another round of transfers in the next few weeks.

Manoj Kumar Das, a 1990-batch IAS officer from Gujarat cadre, was named as the ACS of the Revenue Department. While he would retain the post of ACS, Ports and Transport Department, he had been relieved of his ACS, Panchayat role, the notification issued by the General Administration Department (GAD) showed.

His posting in the key Revenue Department is seen as a suitable rehabilitation, almost 22 months after he was moved out of the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) when the BJP replaced the then Chief Minister Vijay Rupani and his entire Cabinet in September 2021.

Das was the most powerful bureaucrat in the Rupani regime, as he was ACS to the Chief Minister as well to the Industries and Mines department.

After the new government headed by Bhupendra Patel took over, Das was shunted to the Ports and Transport Department as its ACS.

Similarly, another powerful bureaucrat from the Rupani era, Ashwani Kumar, who had served as Rupani’s Secretary in the CMO, has now been posted in the lucrative Urban Development Department (UDD) as its Principal Secretary.

Kumar, an IAS 1997-batch officer from Gujarat cadre, would continue to run the Department of the Sports, Youth and Culture additionally.

In another important change, Arti Kanwar has been appointed as the Secretary, Economic Affairs, in the Finance Department. She replaces Mona Khandhar, who has been moved to what is known as a side-lined post of Principal Secretary, Panchayat.

Kanwar moves from New Delhi, where she has been serving as the Resident Commissioner of Gujarat for almost six years now. Strangely, she would continue to hold this post as an additional charge.

A 2001-batch IAS officer from the state cadre, Kanwar had previously worked in the finance department as the Special Commissioner of State Tax, before moving to New Delhi. She was reportedly keen to go on central deputation, but since that has failed to materialise she would return to Gandhinagar.

Rajkumar Beniwal has been appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Gujarat Maritime Board, a day after the government appointed the Chief Minister’s Adviser S.S. Rathore as its Chairman. The board runs over a dozen ports and jetties, besides serving as the port-sector regulator in the state.

As additional charges seem to be the flavour of the month, Beniwal, a 2004-batch IAS officer of Gujarat cadre, too will retain his current post of Commissioner of Municipalities Administration and Ex-Officio Managing Director of Gujarat Urban Development Company Ltd.

Watch this space for more rejig, which now seems all too imminent, going by the buzz in the corridors of power.