A reshuffle of senior IAS officers has taken place in Bihar. Dr. S. Siddharth, previously the Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, has been appointed as the Development Commissioner of Bihar. Dr. S. Siddharth also held the additional charge of ACS of the Education Department. Now, Dr. B. Rajendra, ACS of the General Administration Department, has been given the additional charge of ACS of the Education Department, with the previous charge taken back from Dr. S. Siddharth.
Furthermore, Harjot Kaur, ACS of the Environment, Forest and Climate Change Department, has been made the Chairman-cum-Member of the Revenue Council. Similarly, Arvind Kumar Chaudhary, ACS of the Home Department, has been given the additional charge of Additional Chief Secretary of the Cabinet Secretariat. Anand Kishore, the Chairman of the Bihar School Examination Board, will also hold the additional charge of Principal Secretary of the Environment, Forest and Climate Change Department.
Dr. S. Siddharth is a 1991-batch IAS officer and was also the Additional Chief Secretary of the Education Department, as well as the Additional Chief Secretary of the Cabinet Department and Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister. B. Rajendra, a 1995-batch IAS officer, has been assigned the additional charge of the Additional Chief Secretary of the Education Department. It is also worth noting that on September 1, Pratyay Amrit, the current Development Commissioner, will become the Chief Secretary of the state. The government had already issued an order for his appointment.
Dr. S. Siddharth has been appointed as the Development Commissioner of Bihar. However, the reason why the additional charge of the Education Department was taken back from him is a hot topic of discussion in the state’s administrative circles. During his tenure, Dr. S. Siddharth implemented several impactful reforms in the Education Department, such as the establishment of model schools, teacher training, and online grievance redressal. However, he also faced criticism for some policies, especially regarding teacher transfers and stricter service conditions.
IAS Dr. S. Siddharth was often seen unexpectedly visiting schools for inspection without any fanfare. Moreover, he used to make sudden video calls to the principals of any school and would review school classes, mid-day meals, etc., on the video call itself. Due to his strictness, school principals and teachers were in a state of shock and used to reach school on time. Everyone had a fear that IAS Dr. S. Siddharth might come to school anytime.