Major Reshuffle: 13 IAS Officers Transferred Ahead of West Bengal Elections
Significant Changes in Administrative Roles
Kolkata: The Election Commission of India (ECI) has announced the transfer of 13 Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers, all serving as District Magistrates (DMs) and District Electoral Officers (DEOs).
According to the ECI's notification released in the afternoon, Jitin Jadav, an IAS officer from the 2016 batch, will take over as the new DM-cum-DEO for Cooch Behar district.
Sandeep Ghosh, also from the 2016 batch, has been appointed as the DM-cum-DEO for Jalpaiguri district.
Vikek Kumar, another officer from the 2016 batch, will serve as the DM-cum-DEO for North Dinajpur district.
Rajanveer Singh Kapur, who belongs to the 2012 batch, is set to become the DM-cum-DEO for the sensitive Malda district.
- Arjun, from the 2010 batch, has been designated as the new DM-cum-DEO for the highly sensitive Murshidabad district.
Srikant Palli, a 2015 batch officer, will assume the role of DM-cum-DEO for Nadia district.
Sweta Agarwal, also from the 2016 batch, has been appointed as the DM-cum-DEO for East Burdwan district.
Smita Pandey, an officer from the 2005 batch, will take on the role of Municipal Commissioner of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) and DEO for the electoral district of Kolkata (Uttar).
Randhir Kumar, from the 2006 batch, will serve as the DEO for the electoral district of Kolkata (Dakshin).
Silpa Gourisaria, a 2009 batch officer, has been appointed as the DM-cum-DEO for North 24 Parganas district, adjacent to Kolkata.
Abhishek Kumar Tiwary, from the 2012 batch, will be the new DM-cum-DEO for South 24 Parganas, another district near Kolkata.
Harishankar Panicker, from the 2013 batch, will take over as the DM-cum-DEO for Darjeeling, while T. Balasubramanian, also from the 2013 batch, will serve as the DM-cum-DEO for Alipurduar district.
Earlier today, the ECI also ordered the transfer of five IPS officers, all holding the rank of Deputy Inspector General (DIG), who oversee specific ranges within the state.
Following the announcement of two-phase polling for West Bengal next month, the ECI has been systematically issuing transfer orders for bureaucrats and police officials at various levels.
A source from the Chief Electoral Officer's office indicated that the transfer process began with high-ranking officials, including the chief secretary and home secretary for bureaucrats, and director generals for police.
Currently, the focus is on transferring mid-level officers such as DMs for bureaucrats and DIGs for police. Future transfers will involve lower-level positions, including additional district magistrates and various police ranks.