Rahul Bhatnagar becomes new UP chief secretary

It will be my endeavour to meet the challenges associated with this responsibility, said Bhatnagar

The Uttar Pradesh government on Tuesday appointed Rahul Bhatnagar as the state's new chief secretary. Bhatnagar replaces 1982 batch IAS officer Deepak Singhal as chief secretary.

In a statement issued after his appointment was formalised by the state government, Bhatnagar said,"The chief minister has given me this new responsibility. It will be my endeavour to meet the challenges associated with this responsibility. It will be my endeavour to ensure a good future for the people of Uttar Pradesh; that we have good infrastructure in place to ensure the overall development of the state and that we have a good environment to ensure all works in the state are carried out."

Singhal who replaced 1978 batch officer Alok Ranjan, who retired on June 30 after a three-month extension of service, has been placed on compulsory wait for his next posting as an officer of the state government, media reports said.

When he became chief secretary, Singhal had superseded at least five other officers senior to him in the civil services, to bag the top job.