Vini Mahajan, 1987- cadre Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, on Friday, has been appointed as the Chief Secretary to Punjab govt. With the appointment of Mahajan, the Cabinet vs Chief Secretary Karan Avtar tiff has come to an end. Interestingly, the Punjab government will witness its first female chief secretary who took charge after replacing Karan Avtar Singh.
Vini is the wife of Punjab DGP Dinkar Gupta, who is also a 1987-batch IPS officer.
This is perhaps the first time any power couple will simultaneously hold the two prominent positions of a state.
As per the release of Punjab government, Mahajan has been appointed chief secretary and in addition principal secretary, personnel and vigilance. Karan Avtar Singh, a 1984-batch IAS officer who was to retire in September, has been posted as special chief secretary, governance reforms and public grievances.
Reportedly, Congress legislators were pressurizing chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh to remove Karan Avtar Singh from the post of chief secretary after he had a scuffle with ministers at meetings. Ministers, led by finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal, had boycotted a pre-cabinet meeting after comments allegedly made by the bureaucrat.
However, the matter was settled with the intervention of Captain Amarinder Singh after Karan Avtar Singh apologized to the ministers.
Here's more information about Vini Mahajan:
Mahajan did Post Graduate Diploma in Management from the Indian Institute of Management, Calcutta in 1987, and in the same year she became IAS officer. She served
Ms Vini Mahajan also served as Additional Chief Secretary, Government of Punjab, and has been leading its Department of Health and Family Welfare since April 2012. She concurrently served as Principal Secretary Department of Medical Education and Research, Punjab from December 2012 to August 2014 and Principal Secretary Department of Finance from May 2014 to June 2015.
Also Read: Minister vs Chief Secretary: Who will be the next Chief Secretary of Punjab?
Prior to this, she served for eight years in the Government of India, including seven years in the Prime Minister’s Office. As Joint Secretary to the Prime Minister of India, she handled, inter alia, matters relating to Finance, Industry and Commerce, Telecom, IT, and the transport sector. Earlier as Director in the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, she was involved with India’s external assistance program, as well as infrastructure issues including Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs).
She has earlier served as M.D. of the Punjab Infrastructure Development Board, where she played a key role in promoting PPPs in physical as well as social infrastructure. She served as the first Director of Disinvestment in the state. In a brief stint as Secretary, Power she was involved with power sector reforms in the state.
As Special Secretary, Expenditure, she drafted the state’s Fiscal Responsibility legislation and White Paper on the state’s finances. She has over 8 years' experience in cutting edge positions at the field level, including as Deputy Commissioner (the first woman to be posted as such in Punjab in 25 years).