KOLKATA, India — West Bengal marked a historic shift in its administrative leadership on Wednesday as the state government named Nandini Chakraborty the new Chief Secretary. Chakraborty, who previously served as the additional chief secretary to the state home and hill affairs department, becomes the first woman to hold the state’s highest bureaucratic office.
Chakraborty succeeds Manoj Pant, who officially retired on Wednesday following a six-month extension of his original June retirement date. While the state government had requested an additional six-month extension for Pant, the proposal was ultimately denied by the Department of Personnel and Training, which serves as the controlling authority for all-India service cadre officials.
Following the transition, Jagdish Prasad Meena has been appointed to fill Chakraborty’s former role as the additional chief secretary to the state home and hill affairs department.
Despite his retirement, the state government has retained Pant in a new capacity. He will now serve as the principal secretary to the Chief Minister. This move comes amid recent criticism from Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who accused the West Bengal government of diluting federal personnel rules to suit administrative convenience when appointing senior officials.
A member of the 1994 IAS batch, Chakraborty has managed numerous high-profile administrative portfolios, though her career has seen periods of friction between state and federal authorities. Most recently, she served as the Principal Secretary to Governor C.V. Ananda Bose. Her tenure at the Governor’s residence, now known as Lok Bhavan, was marked by a standoff between the Raj Bhavan and the state secretariat regarding her removal from the post.
After the Chief Minister intervened in the matter, the state government eventually transferred Chakraborty to the state tourism department before elevating her to the home and hills affairs department in December 2023. (Source: IANS)
