New Delhi : The new BJP government in West Bengal has moved quickly to restructure the Chief Minister’s Office, naming retired IAS officer Subrata Gupta as adviser to Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. Gupta has been brought in as adviser to the Chief Minister at a time when the new administration is shaping its governance structure after the Assembly election victory.
Officials in the administration said Gupta’s long bureaucratic experience is expected to help the government in policy coordination and governance-related matters. In another key appointment, IAS officer Shantanu Bala has been named private secretary to Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. Bala, a 2017-batch IAS officer, was serving as additional district magistrate of South 24 Parganas before being moved to the Chief Minister’s Office.
Both Gupta and Bala have been asked to take charge of their new assignments immediately, according to the official notifications. A 1990-batch IAS officer and alumnus of IIT Kanpur, Agarwal is regarded as one of the most experienced bureaucrats in the state administration. Although several officers from his batch, including Vivek Kumar, Hridesh Mohan and Vivek Bharadwaj, remain in service, administrative circles suggest that Agarwal has emerged as the frontrunner for the top bureaucratic post owing to his performance in handling key responsibilities over the years.
Sources said his stewardship of the CEO’s office during the recently concluded Assembly elections significantly strengthened his credentials. The Election Commission’s confidence in the smooth and orderly conduct of polling under his leadership is believed to have played a major role in elevating his stature within the bureaucracy.
Despite being one of the senior-most IAS officers in the state, Agarwal was earlier overlooked for the post of Chief Secretary, a decision that reportedly caused disappointment within sections of the administrative fraternity close to him. The current CEO is scheduled to retire on 31 July this year.
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