The Gujarat government on Tuesday, 21 July executed a sweeping administrative reshuffle, transferring and reposting 28 Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers and 13 Gujarat Administrative Service (GAS) Class-I officers across key departments, urban local bodies, district administrations, and state-run corporations. The General Administration Department issued two separate notifications dated 21 July, detailing the changes.

Senior IAS Appointments

Gaurang Makwana, who was serving as Director of the Gujarat Energy Development Agency (GEDA) while holding additional charge as Managing Director of Uttar Gujarat Vij Company Ltd. (UGVCL), has been appointed full-time Managing Director of UGVCL. D.K. Patel, previously Officer on Special Duty in the Commissionerate of Geology and Mining, steps in as the new Director of GEDA.

Prabhav Joshi, Municipal Commissioner of Junagadh Municipal Corporation, moves to the Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) as Joint Managing Director. His successor in Junagadh will be I.R. Vala, currently Secretary of the Sports Authority of Gujarat.

In the power sector, K.J. Rathod, Director of Skill Development, has been named Managing Director of Dakshin Gujarat Vij Company Ltd. (DGVCL), Surat, while M.D. Chudasma takes charge as Managing Director of Pashchim Gujarat Vij Company Ltd. (PGVCL), Rajkot.

District and Municipal Changes

H.J. Prajapati moves from Porbandar Municipal Corporation to become District Development Officer (DDO) of Amreli. Suthar Raj Rameshchandra, Chief Executive Officer of the Surat Urban Development Authority (SUDA), has been appointed Municipal Commissioner of Porbandar Municipal Corporation.

Among DDO-level changes, Smit Lodha, DDO of Dahod, shifts to Deputy Municipal Commissioner of Surat Municipal Corporation, with Hiren J. Barot taking over as Dahod DDO. K.P. Joshi has been posted as DDO of Devbhumi Dwarka, D.K. Brahmbhatt as DDO of Gandhinagar, and K.S. Jhala as DDO of Dangs-Ahwa.

State Corporations and Specialised Roles

M.P. Pandya, Registrar of Co-operative Societies, has been appointed Managing Director of Gujarat Medical Services Corporation Ltd., replacing D.K. Brahmbhatt, who moves to Gandhinagar district administration. Mahesh Jani, Chairman of the Gujarat State Social Welfare Board, takes over as Mission Director of the Gujarat Urban Livelihood Mission.

C.B. Ganatra has been posted as Managing Director of the Gujarat State Civil Supplies Corporation, while B.H. Patel has been appointed Managing Director of the Gujarat Scheduled Castes Development Corporation. M.K. Joshi takes charge as Chief Executive Officer of the Development Support Agency of Gujarat (D-SAG).

Other notable postings include A.K. Joshi as Managing Director of the Gujarat Unreserved Educational and Economical Development Corporation, R.N. Kuchara as Regional Commissioner of Municipalities, Rajkot, C.A. Gandhi as Regional Commissioner of Municipalities, Vadodara, and P.B. Rathod as Director of Skill Development. B.N. Patel continues as Executive Director of Gujarat Gas Limited and V.K. Jadav continues as Director of Developing Castes Welfare.

GAS Officers Reshuffled

A parallel notification covered 13 GAS officers. V.K. Patel has been posted as Executive Director of GIDC, replacing B.K. Joshi who moves on following his IAS-level transfer. A.K. Prajapati has been appointed Director of the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA), Arvalli-Modasa, while D.N. Satani is posted as Joint Director of the Directorate of Civil Supplies.

G.V. Miyani takes charge as Secretary of the Gujarat Panchayat Service Selection Board, Y.S. Chaudhari as Joint Managing Director of the Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Limited, and A.K. Kalsariya as Officer on Special Duty in the Commissionerate of Geology and Mining. M.R. Prajapati has been appointed Secretary of the Sports Authority of Gujarat.

K.S. Dabhi is posted as Resident Additional Collector, Valsad, D.M. Gohil as Joint Commissioner of the Regional Vishleshan Committee, Surat, and A.A. Dodiya as Resident Additional Collector, Amreli. In a mutual exchange, P.C. Dave becomes Deputy Municipal Commissioner of Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation while B.R. Ahir moves to Officer on Special Duty in the Office of the Commissioner of Transport. Kum. K.B. Patel has been appointed Additional Director of the Commissioner of Geology and Mining, Gandhinagar.

The reshuffle, one of the largest single-day administrative reconfigurations in Gujarat this year, is expected to take immediate effect across affected departments and corporations.