DNA

• Transfer of upright Leena Mehendale and Kavita Gupta raises many eyebrows in the babudom

Mumbai, May 25: The government on Thursday effected a major reshuffle in the bureaucracy by transferring 28 IAS officers. The decisions related to transfers of two senior IAS women officers to lesser significant portfolios has raised eyebrows and set the tongues rolling in the bureaucratic circles. Principal Secretary Leena Mehendale (1974 IAS batch) in the Ministry of Animal Husbandry and Fisheries has been transferred to Haffkine Institute as Executive Director. She has been replaced by the relatively-younger but honest IAS officer Medha Gadgil (1983 batch).

In another case, Secretary Accounts and Treasury (Finance) Kavita Gupta has been made Executive Director Maharashtra State Small Scale Industry Development.

Sources said, “Mehendale who was posted in the Ministry of Animal Husbandry had cracked the whip to plug corruption and mismanagement which caused discomfort to many in the Ministry.” The decision to shift Mehendale to Haffkine Institute has created a furore, as she is a very senior and upright officer.

In another case, Kavita Gupta had lodged a complaint after Finance Secretary Subodh Kumar divested her of the Accounts and Treasury (Finance) and left her with the outcome budget work. The Finance Minister Jayant Patil had assured her that he would look into the matter. He was prevailed upon by Kumar.

Unlike the past, not all women IAS officers were unhappy this time. Take the case of Additional Chief Secretary Neela Satyanarayan (1972 batch). She was transferred from Environment and Forest to Revenue Ministry of her liking.