Nandini Chakraborty has been appointed as the Chief Secretary of the state, making her the first woman and first Bengali woman to hold the highest bureaucratic post. The appointment was announced on Wednesday, bringing an end to days of speculation over who would succeed outgoing Chief Secretary Manoj Pant.
Wednesday marked the last working day of Manoj Pant as Chief Secretary. Pant, who was due to retire on June 30, had been given a six-month extension that ended on December 31. Following the reshuffle, he has now been appointed Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister, holding the rank of Chief Secretary.
A 1994-batch IAS officer, Nandini Chakraborty takes charge at a crucial time as the state prepares for the 2026 Assembly elections. Until now, she was serving as the Home Secretary.
Jagadish Prasad Meena gets key home role
Following Chakraborty’s move, 2004-batch IAS officer Jagadish Prasad Meena has been entrusted with Secretary-level responsibilities in the Home Department. The appointment reflects the government’s effort to ensure continuity in the crucial department.
Along with the change at the top, the state government issued several separate notifications assigning additional responsibilities to senior IAS officers:
- Atri Bhattacharya, Additional Chief Secretary of the Sundarban Affairs Department, has been given charge as Director General of the Netaji Subhas Administrative Training Institute.
- Barun Kumar Ray, Additional Chief Secretary of the Non-Conventional and Renewable Energy Sources Department, will also look after the Tourism Department.
- Surendra Gupta, Principal Secretary of the Public Health Engineering Department, has been given additional charge as Divisional Commissioner of the Presidency Division.
- Dushyant Nariala, Additional Chief Secretary of the North Bengal Development Department, will also serve as Principal Secretary, GTA, along with charge of the Correctional Administration Department.
