Daijiworld Media Network - Lucknow
Lucknow, Nov 14: The Uttar Pradesh government has transferred 38 IAS officers in a major administrative reshuffle ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections. The orders were issued late Friday night, with new district magistrates appointed in five districts along with changes in several key administrative positions.
The reshuffle includes appointments to the posts of district magistrates in Sitapur, Maharajganj, Siddharthnagar, Muzaffarnagar and Bijnor. Changes have also been made in the Lucknow and Meerut Development Authorities, municipal corporations of Ghaziabad and Varanasi, and seven chief development officer positions.
The transfers come ahead of the Special Summary Revision of electoral rolls and are being viewed in the context of the Election Commission of India's guidelines on the transfer of officials.
On October 27, the Election Commission directed that officers who would complete three years of service in a particular district by May 31, 2027, should be transferred. The guidelines also cover officials posted in municipal corporations and development authorities. Officers who were assigned election duties in specific Assembly constituencies or districts during the previous Assembly elections or by-elections are also barred from being posted in the same areas again. The Commission had sought a compliance report from the Chief Secretary by November 30.
As part of the reshuffle, Rajaganapati R has been removed as Sitapur district magistrate and appointed director of the State Urban Development Agency. Prathamesh Kumar, who was serving as vice-chairperson of the Lucknow Development Authority, has been appointed the new Sitapur DM.
The district magistrates of Maharajganj and Siddharthnagar have been interchanged. Gaurav Singh Sogervaal, the outgoing Maharajganj DM, will take charge of Siddharthnagar, while Shivsharanappa, who was serving as Siddharthnagar DM, has been posted to Maharajganj.
Joginder Singh has been appointed Bijnor DM, while Sunil Kumar Singh will take charge as Muzaffarnagar DM. Umesh Mishra, the outgoing Muzaffarnagar DM, has been appointed Special Secretary in the Urban Development Department. Bijnor DM Umesh Pratap Singh has been posted as Special Secretary in the Public Works Department.
In other changes, Ghaziabad Municipal Commissioner Vikramaditya Singh Malik has been appointed vice-chairperson of the Meerut Development Authority. Himanshu Nagpal, the outgoing Varanasi Municipal Commissioner, will take charge in Ghaziabad.
Gorakhpur Chief Development Officer Shashwat Tripurari has been appointed Municipal Commissioner of Varanasi, while Abhishek Kumar, formerly Special Secretary in the IT and Electronics Department, has been appointed Gorakhpur CDO.
The government has also made appointments to the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority. Sanjay Kumar Meena and Ayodhya CDO Krishna Kumar Singh have been appointed Additional Chief Executive Officers of the authority. Rajesh Kumar has been appointed the new CDO of Ayodhya.
The Uttar Pradesh government had transferred 15 IAS officers during the last week of the previous month as well.