Ranchi — The Jharkhand government has appointed Avinash Kumar, a 1993-batch IAS officer, as the new Chief Secretary of the state. He succeeds Alka Tiwari, who retired on Tuesday.
A notification issued by the state government announced that Kumar will not only assume the Chief Secretary’s role but will also serve as Additional Chief Secretary to the Chief Minister and as Chief Resident Commissioner of Jharkhand Bhavan in New Delhi.
Kumar brings with him wide administrative experience, having served as Development Commissioner, CMD of Jharkhand Energy Development Corporation Limited, and MD of Jharkhand Bijli Vitran Nigam Limited.
Following his appointment, Kumar met Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Tuesday evening. In the meantime, Ajay Kumar Singh, Additional Chief Secretary (Health), has been given temporary charge as Development Commissioner.
The reshuffle in the top bureaucracy comes as part of a seniority-based selection process. With senior officers Shailesh Kumar Singh and Nidhi Khare both on Central deputation, Kumar, next in line, was selected. Several other senior IAS officers were considered, but the final decision went in his favour.
With inputs from IANS