Daijiworld Media Network – Kolkata

Kolkata, May 6: Ahead of the formation of a new government in West Bengal, all retired bureaucrats appointed under the outgoing Mamata Banerjee-led administration have been directed not to attend offices, in a significant administrative development.

Sources said the directive, issued by Chief Secretary Manoj Pant, applies to retired IAS and state service officers who were reappointed in advisory and other key roles across various departments.

The order will remain in effect until the new government formally takes charge. Several retired officials have reportedly stepped down and vacated official accommodations following the directive.

During the previous regime, these officials held influential positions in sectors such as infrastructure, health, and finance, playing key advisory and executive roles.

Meanwhile, government departments have been instructed to ensure strict safeguarding of official records. Secretaries have been directed to keep important files within departmental premises, while financial advisors have been asked to prepare detailed inventories.

The move comes in the wake of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s sweeping victory in the West Bengal Assembly elections, where it secured 207 seats in the 294-member House, surpassing the majority mark of 148 and ending the Trinamool Congress’s 15-year rule.

The transition marks a major political shift, with the state set to be governed by the same party that is currently in power at the Centre.