1994 batch IAS Aparajita Sarangi quits IAS; likely to contest Bhubaneswar Lok Sabha seat on a BJP ticket

Aparajita Sarangi (Photo Courtesy: Twitter)

Aparajita Sarangi, a 1994 batch Odisha cadre IAS officer who took voluntary retirement early this month, is joining the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP), thereby becoming the second IAS officer in the recent time to quit IAS and join the party that has been ruling the Central government. Only in August this year, 2005 batch Chhattisgarh cadre IAS, OP Choudhary, resigned from the elite service to join the BJP. He contested from Kharasia constituency of the state in the assembly poll that was held on November 20. The results will be out on December 11. In Sarangi’s state, Odisha, the BJP is, however, in the…

Damaad Shree Video: BJP drags UPSC member and retired Haryana cadre IAS to Robert Vadra land deals

A RETIRED IAS officer of Haryana cadre and current UPSC member Chhatar Singh has been on BJP’s firing line, as the principal opposition party on Sunday sharpened its attack on Robert Vadra’s land deals by releasing a video named “Damaad Shree” and accusing Haryana government and earlier Congress-led Rajasthan regime of colluding with Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s son-in-law in expediting out-of-turn…

Political Udaan: IPS Kanchan Chaudhary is an AAP candidate; ex-Mumbai police commissioner gets BJP ticket

Kanchan Chaudhary Bhattacharya, India’s first woman Director General of Police (DGP) and the one who was just a batch junior to first woman IPS officer Kiran Bedi, has been nominated by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to contest from Haridwar. The name of this former Uttarakhand DGP, on whose life a popular Hindi TV serial Udaan (Fight) was aired by DD National in 1989–91, was announced by AAP as its Lok Sabha candidate on Saturday, the day the BJP too announced the…

BJP accuses Central government of using IAS, IPS officers against its governments

THE BJP has made a case arguing that the UPA government was using some IAS and IPS officers to destabilize their governments. Hit by the recent instances of a few Gujarat officers virtually revolting against chief minister Narendra Modi, the BJP now says the officers are encouraged to voice against governments in Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka and Chhattisgarh too.

The issue cropped up in the recent CMs’ conclave which was attended by BJP chief ministers, according to some media reports. The BJP had earlier accused the Congress of using Governors to destabilize their governments.

1991 batch IAS Pathak is new Pune Warrior

Mahesh Pathak, a 1991 batch Maharashtra cadre IAS officer, has been appointed as municipal commissioner of Pune replacing Mahesh Zagade. Pathak is now the higher and technical education secretary of the state. An engineer-turned IAS, Pathak is currently in West Bengal on an election duty.

Action and Appointments

a) Ms Anita Bhatnagar Jain, a 1985 batch UP cadre IAS, presently working as joint secretary in the department of higher education has been appointed as joint secretary in the department of telecommunications in place of Shankar Agganval, a 1980 batch UP cadre IAS.

b) Khurshid Ahmed Ganai, a 1982 batch Jammu and Kashmir cadre IAS has been appointed as joint secretary in the ministry of information and broadcasting in place of VB Pyarelal, a 1983 batch Assam cadre IAS.

c) Jagdeep Goel, a 1989 batch IRS-IT officer has been appointed as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) with minister of science and technology Pawan Kumar Bansal.

Demolition Man Is Back: Former IAS KJ Alphons joins BJP; set to play bigger role in Delhi politics

IT’S a sharp change of track from left to right. Former IAS officer of 1979 batch KJ Alphons who was featured by Time magazine in 1994 as one of the 100 young global leaders for new Millennium, has joined the BJP. The former officer, who led the demolition of 14,310 unauthorized buildings in New Delhi as the DDA commissioner, left IAS in 2006 to contest Kerala assembly polls and became an independent MLA with Left’s support. Now, he has joined right wing BJP to play a wider political role in Delhi.

Though Alphons is known more as a demolition man, he is also credited with making Kottayam India’s first 100 per cent literate town.

Born in 1954 Alphons completed his post graduation from the Jawaharlal Nehru University before getting selected as an Indian Administrative Service officer. His autobiography, “Making a Difference,” is a best seller.

BJP president Nitin Gadkari said Alphons would be appointed as a member of the party’s national executive and would also be involved with the preparation of BJP’s India Vision Document.

SR Rao conducts probe on Tata-VSNL deal

Telecom department’s additional secretary and 1978 batch Gujarat cadre IAS, SR Rao will be conducting an inquiry into Tata-VSNL land deal after telecom minister Kapil Sibal raised concerns over the disinvestment of VSNL in 2002 and the way de-merger of 773.13 acres of surplus land of VSNL was handled.

A double MA in social work and rural development (UK), SR Rao is still known for his stint as Municipal Commissioner to a traumatized, plague-hit Surat city. He is credited with cleaning up the city and placing it back into normalcy.