“Unassailable Role” of district collectors stressed; pep talk to state officers

Secretary RC Misra

A FEW senior bureaucrats and experts including DoPT secretary PK Misra and World Bank’s senior public sector management specialist Vikram Chand on Monday participated in a panel discussion in New Delhi on role of district collectors in changing times. As officers from across states gathered in New Delhi to deliberate possible administrative reforms, senior bureaucrats like secretary, administrative reforms Ramesh C Misra and Kerala’s additional chief secretary Dr Nivedita P Haran gave a pep talk to tell the collectors that they could become…
a catalyst for change in people’s life.
For many IAS officers, the tenures as district collector (or district magistrate as it’s called in some states) and the first half of joint secretary are the best innings. As a collector, a young officer finds himself as the virtual king of the district where he or she faces no political interferences whatsoever. But with two DMs being kidnapped and later released by Maoists in recent time, the life of a DM is no longer as easy as it used to be.
The issue that cropped up during the panel discussion included use of technology to streamline the work of a collector, empowering the collector to become a successful leader, capacity building etc. The panelists stressed the “unassailable role” the district collector plays in the development of a district.

Bureaucrats’ Role Swapped
S Machendranathan, a 1979 batch Tamil Nadu cadre IAS and additional secretary and financial adviser in the ministry of steel, has been appointed as additional secretary and financial adviser in the ministry of civil aviation. Machendranathan had to move from one ministry to another as the government was keen to transfer former DGCA EK Bharat Bhushan out of the ministry of civil aviation. Now, Bharat Bhushan will take Machendranathan’s role in the ministry of steel.

Action and Appointments
a) AK Mangotra, a 1978 batch Manipur-Tripura cadre IAS, presently Director General of DGSD under department of commerce, has been appointed as secretary (border management) under the ministry of home affairs in place of Anwar Ehsan Ahmed, a 1976 batch Manipur-Tripura cadre IAS who has retired.