One officer, many departments: Inside Odisha’s IAS reshuffle after new Chief Secretary takes charge

A day after the new Chief Secretary assumed office, Odisha witnessed a major reshuffle at the IAS level, sparking intense discussions in the power corridors of the state administration.

Senior IAS officer Satyabrata Sahu, who was serving as Additional Chief Secretary, Home Department, has been moved out of Lok Seva Bhawan and posted to the Board of Revenue in Cuttack.

In a significant development, 1993-batch IAS officer Deoranjan Kumar Singh has been appointed as the new Development Commissioner—considered the second-most powerful administrative position in the state. Singh, who is two years junior to Sahu, has also been given additional charge of the Revenue Department as Additional Chief Secretary. He formally assumed charge on Thursday.

Another key highlight of the reshuffle is the expanded role of Hemant Sharma. Already serving as Additional Chief Secretary of the Industries Department and the Information & Public Relations Department, and as Chairman of IPICOL, Sharma has now been entrusted with the additional charge of the crucial Home Department. He took charge on Thursday.

The reshuffle has seen several senior officers being assigned charge of two to three departments each, reflecting the Chief Minister’s confidence in select administrators. Chief Minister Mohan Majhi is said to have reposed particular trust in Deoranjan Kumar Singh by assigning him the Development Commissioner’s role.

"Odisha is in a new trajectory. New chapters are being written so that our Odisha will be a developed state by 2036. I will definitely try to contribute in this direction as per my potential and wisdom," said Development Commissioner Deoranjan Kumar Singh.

"Effort is underway to improve the infrastructure and recruitment process in the Home and Police Departments. I will try to improve it further," said Hemant Sharma, Additional Chief Secretary of Home Department.

The state government has also entrusted additional responsibilities to the 1999-batch IAS couple, Shubha Sharma and Bhaskar Jyoti Sharma. Bhaskar Jyoti Sharma, currently Principal Secretary of the Excise Department, with additional charge of CMD, OPTCL and Chairman, OSBCL, will continue as Principal Secretary, Forest, Environment & Climate Change Department.

Similarly, Shubha Sharma, who is serving as Principal Secretary of the Women and Child Development Department, has been assigned the additional responsibility of the Water Resources Department, which functions directly under the Chief Minister.

Rajesh Prabhakar Patil, a 2005-batch IAS officer, has been appointed as the new Special Relief Commissioner and Managing Director of the Odisha State Disaster Management Authority (OSDMA) as an additional charge. Patil is currently serving as Secretary of the Cooperation Department, Special Secretary of the Housing and Urban Development Department, and Chairman of the Odisha State Warehousing Corporation.

Notably, several other senior IAS officers including Surendra Kumar, Arabinda Padhee, Usha Padhee, Sanjay Singh, Thirumala Naik and Aravind Agrawal are already holding multiple key assignments.

Also Read: Odisha Govt effects major IAS reshuffle on New Year, assigns new additional charges

Meanwhile, in a bid to further energise the state administrative machinery, the Chief Minister on Thursday handed over a 15-point directive to the newly appointed Chief Secretary. However, concerns are being raised over whether the growing practice of assigning multiple departments to individual officers may pose challenges in effectively achieving the government’s administrative objectives.

"Why so many departments were given to the Administrative officers. When the Chief Minister is trying to give momentum to the administration, the reshuffling will definitely affect it. If some administrative officers will be given the responsibilities of so many departments, how they could give justice to each department?" asked senior journalist Prasanna Mohanty.