Patna: In a significant administrative shake-up, the Bihar government has reassigned several high-ranking officials, including Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) KK Pathak of the Education Department, who was on leave. Pathak has been appointed to the Revenue and Land Reforms Department but will continue to hold the additional responsibility of Director General of Bipad until further notice. The reshuffle also includes the transfer of six more IAS officers, including the District Magistrates (DMs) of two districts.
KK Pathak has been on leave from June 2 to June 30. In his absence, Dr. S Siddharth, Principal Secretary of the Chief Minister’s Secretariat, was assigned the charge of the Education Department. As per the notification from the General Administration Department, Dr. S Siddharth will continue in this additional role until further orders.
The notification further stated that IAS Ashutosh Kumar Verma, a 2010 batch officer, has been reinstated as the DM of Nawada. Similarly, IAS Rajkumar has been reappointed as the DM of Bhojpur. Both Rajkumar and Verma were previously removed from their posts during the Lok Sabha elections by the Election Commission’s directive.
Deepak Kumar Singh, previously the Additional Chief Secretary of the Revenue and Land Reforms Department, has been reassigned as the Additional Chief Secretary of the Rural Works Department. Arvind Kumar Chaudhary, the Principal Secretary of the Finance Department, has been transferred to the Home Department, where he will also hold additional charge of the Vigilance Department until further orders.
Lokesh Kumar Singh will now take full charge of the Finance Department. IAS Pankaj Kumar Pal has been appointed Secretary of the Rural Development Department and will also be responsible for the Bihar Industrial Area Development Authority (BIADA). Additionally, Bhojpur DM Mahendra Kumar has been transferred to serve as the Managing Director of the South Bihar Power Distribution Company, while Nawada DM Prashant Kumar has been appointed Director of the Social Welfare Department.
