3 min readLucknowJun 2, 2015 12:37 AM IST
First published on: Jun 2, 2015 at 12:37 AM IST
Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Thirteen IAS officers from the Uttar Pradesh cadre are heading significant ministries and other important posts in the Narendra Modi-led government.
The 1977-batch IAS from UP cadre, Pradeep Kumar Sinha, who was so far serving as the secretary of Union Ministry of Power, is set to take over next week from cabinet secretary Ajit Kumar Seth — also a 1974-batch UP cadre officer. State cadre IAS officers are also heading significant ministries like Coal, Urban Development, Culture, Petroleum and Natural gas, Water Resources River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Agriculture, Shipping, Department of Commerce, Air India, Department of Telecommunication, Department of Food & Public Distribution and Department of School Education & Literacy under Ministry of HRD.
[related-post]
Besides, secretary general (Lok Sabha) Anoop Mishra, is also UP cadre IAS officer from the 1978 batch. Mishra was chief secretary during the Mayawati regime in the state and opted for central deputation after Samajwadi Party came to power. Mishra had taken charge of secretary general in December 2014.
Another significant post is held by 1981-batch IAS officer Balvinder Kumar, who is the vice-chairman of Delhi Development Authority. Rajeev Kapor, a 1983-batch officer, is posted as director of Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration in Mussorie while another UP cadre officer, Rohit Nandan, is the chairman and managing director of Air India.
“A large number of officers from Uttar Pradesh being posted in the Centre is not surprising as UP cadre is the biggest in the country,” said Bhuvnesh Kumar, secretary of Uttar Pradesh IAS Association. Kumar, however, denied that Uttar Prdaesh being a significant political state has anything to do with the officers occupying significant posts.
Meanwhile, some young officers from the state are also serving as private secretaries of Union ministers. The 2002-batch IAS officer Sameer Verma is private secretary to Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Uma Bharti. Verma was the Jhansi district magistrate when Bharti contested Lok Sabha election from the constituency. He hails from Madhya Pradesh — Bharti’s home district. Similarly, 1996-batch officer Nitishwer Kumar is the private secretary to Minister of State for Railways Manoj Sinha.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Share
