DW BUREAU / Chandigarh

Senior IAS officer Arun Kumar Gupta has been appointed as principal secretary to Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, effective immediately. The state government has issued transfer and posting orders for four other bureaucrats.

Gupta, a 1992-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, currently serves as the additional chief secretary in the Town and Country Planning Department and the Additional ACS in the Industries and Commerce Department.

According to an order issued by chief secretary Vivek Joshi on Wednesday, Gupta's appointment fills the post left vacant by the transfer of senior IAS officer V Umashankar.

Last month, the Centre had cleared the deputation of Umashankar for appointment as secretary in the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.

In another key move, the BJP-led Haryana government appointed Saket Kumar, a 2005-batch officer, as additional principal secretary to the chief minister. Kumar was previously the Managing Director of the Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam.

Amit Kumar Agarwal, who was serving as additional principal secretary to the chief minister, has been appointed as Commissioner and Secretary of the Development and Panchayats Department, as well as Managing Director of Haryana Vidyut Prasaran Nigam Ltd.

Meanwhile, Ashima Brar, also serving as additional principal secretary to the chief minister, has been appointed Secretary of the Social Justice, Empowerment and Welfare of Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes (SEWA) Department.

Yash Pal, currently serving as Director of Urban Local Bodies, has been appointed deputy principal secretary to the chief minister.

Notably, after the BJP secured a third consecutive term in Haryana, the Nayab Singh Saini government appointed former top bureaucrat Rajesh Khullar as chief principal secretary to the

Chief Minister.

Khullar, who was appointed chief principal secretary to then Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar after his retirement over a year ago, continued in the role even after Saini succeeded Khattar as chief minister

in March.

Last month, Vivek Joshi, a 1989-batch IAS officer, was appointed Haryana's chief secretary. Joshi, who had been repatriated from the Government of India, took over the role from T V S N Prasad, who retired last month.

(editor@dailyworld.in)