IAS officer appointed as Maharashtra State Board chairperson for the first time

In a first, Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer Trigun Kulkarni has been appointed as the chairperson of the Maharashtra State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education (MSBSHSE) this week. The post was last held by Sharad Gosavi who was reassigned as Director of Primary Education after completion of three years. Previous chairs of MSBSHSE, like Gosavi, were drawn from the state civil service, with this being the first time an IAS officer has been assigned the role. The board is responsible for conducting the important class 10 and class 12 board exams.

The School Education and Sports Department has multiple autonomous directorates, boards, and councils reporting to the Commissioner of Education (currently IAS Sachindra Pratap Singh), who reports to the State Education Secretary. These posts include Director of Education (Primary), Director of Education (Secondary and Higher Secondary), Director of Education (Scheme), Chairperson of Maharashtra State Council of Examination (MSCE), Director of Textbook Production and Research Centre (Balbharti), Director of State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT), and chairman of MSBSHSE. Separately, the State Project Director of Maharashtra Prathmik Shikshan Parishad (MPSP) also reports to the State Education Secretary.

Currently, the posts of Director of SCERT (Rahul Rekhawar), State Project Director MPSP (Sanjay Yadav), Chairperson MSBSHSE (Trigun Kulkarni), and Chairperson MSCE (Nandkumar Bedse) are occupied by IAS officers.

Some view the move of increasing appointment of IAS officers with suspicion. “IAS officers are believed to have passed the tough UPSC exam and are considered to be more efficient. However in reality, there is no such observation on the ground. In the last few years, there has been a general state of confusion in the Education Department. The appointment of IAS officers has not brought any improvement. The officers who have been promoted from the Education Service have experience from the local level. IAS officers might not have the same level of commitment to education as they might be assigned to some other department after three years,” opined educationist Dr Vasant Kalpande, who has previously served as Maharashtra Director of Primary Education.