Bihar Government Transfers 22 IAS, 79 IPS, and 45 BAS Officers

The Bihar government has transferred 22 IAS, 79 IPS, and 45 Bihar Administrative Service (BAS) officers, including five district magistrates (DMs) and 17 SPs.

In a significant bureaucratic move, the Bihar government on Friday, January 26, transferred a total of 22 Indian Administrative Service (IAS), 79 Indian Police Service (IPS), and 45 Bihar Administrative Service (BAS) officers. The transfers affected five district magistrates (DMs) and 17 superintendents of police (SPs).

Key Transfers

Among the notable transfers, Patna DM Chandrasekhar Singh, a 2010-batch IAS officer, has been appointed as the special secretary in the chief minister's secretariat. Singh recently gained attention for his public disagreement with the state education department regarding the closure of schools in Patna due to cold wave conditions. He will be replaced by Shirsat Kapil Ashok, a 2011-batch IAS officer who currently serves as the IG prisons.

In other significant changes, Naval Kishor Choudhary, a 2013-batch IAS officer and the current Gopalganj DM, will take over as the new Bhagalpur DM. Subrat Kumar Sen, the incumbent Bhagalpur DM, will be transferred to Muzaffarpur as the new DM.

Additionally, Arvind Kumar Choudhary, a 1995-batch IAS officer currently serving as the principal secretary of finance, has been given the additional responsibility of principal secretary of the rural development department. Senthil K Kumar, a 1996-batch IAS officer and the principal secretary of the home department, will now serve as the principal secretary of the planning department. Safeena AN, a 1997-batch IAS officer and the principal secretary of the minorities welfare department, has been appointed as a member of the revenue board.

IPS and BAS Transfers

The home department also issued a notification announcing the transfer of 79 IPS officers, including 17 SPs posted in various districts. Sushil Mansingh Khopde, a 1995-batch IPS officer currently serving as the additional director general (operations) of the Special Task Force (STF), has been appointed as the ADG prohibition. Amrit Raj, a 1998-batch IPS officer and the current ADG prohibition, will take over as the ADG operations.

Among the SPs, Deepak Ranjan, a 2012-batch IPS officer currently posted in Jehanabad, has been transferred as the commandant of the Bihar Special Armed Police in Bodh Gaya. SP Naugachia Sushant Kumar Saroj will now serve as the SP of Bagaha, while SP Araria Ashok Kumar Singh has been appointed as the commandant of the Bihar Special Armed Police in Sasaram. SP Siwan Shailesh Kumar Sinha will take charge as the commandant of the Bihar Special Armed Police in Patna, and SP Saharasha Upendra Nath Verma will become the new Purnea SP. Amitesh Kumar, the current SP of Khagaria, will be transferred to Siwan as the new SP.

Furthermore, 45 BAS officers were also assigned new postings as part of the bureaucratic reshuffle.

Routine Exercise

A senior official from the general administration department (GAD) clarified that the transfers and postings made in the past few days were part of a routine exercise. On January 23, the government had already transferred 29 senior IAS officers in a major bureaucratic rejig.