Govt reshuffles 20 IAS officers

Bhubaneswar: Effecting a major reshuffle of 20 IAS officers, state govt on Thursday appointed Bishnupada Sethi as chairman of Odisha Forest Development Corporation, months after he was shifted as officer on special duty in the general administration department following CBI summons in a bribery case. Sethi, a 1995-batch officer, was also given additional charge as chief administrator of the KBK (Kalahandi-Balangir-Koraput) region.
Tourism secretary Balwant Singh was given additional charge as managing director of the newly created Odisha State Highways Authority. Development commissioner Deoranjan Kumar Singh was given additional charge as additional chief secretary, steel and mines, a post earlier held by Surendra Kumar. Kumar will continue as additional chief secretary, general administration and parliamentary affairs. Arabinda Kumar Padhee, additional chief secretary, agriculture and farmers' empowerment, was transferred to revenue and disaster management department, the post held by Singh. Padhee will continue to hold additional charge as chief administrator of the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA). Usha Padhee, additional chief secretary, housing and urban development, was given additional charge as chairperson of the Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (Idco). N B S Rajput, principal secretary, public enterprises, was appointed principal secretary, commerce and transport department, a post that Usha was holding as additional charge. Shubha Sarma, principal secretary, women and child development, with additional charge of principal secretary, water resources, was appointed full-time principal secretary, water resources. Mrinalini Darswal, special resident commissioner in New Delhi, was appointed secretary, women and child development. Rashmita Panda, director, employment-cum-CEO, Odisha Skill Development Authority, and CEO of Startup Odisha, was appointed vice-chairperson of the Bhubaneswar Development Authority, with additional charge as managing director of Bhubaneswar Smart City Limited and special secretary, housing and urban development. Anupam Saha, additional secretary to the chief minister, was given additional charge as managing director of the Odisha Bridge and Construction Corporation (OBCC) Ltd.