Alapan Bandyopadhyay appointed new WB Home Secretary

In an attempt at administrative revamp in the wake of the ruling Trinamool Congress suffering serious setbacks in the Lok Sabha polls, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday appointed Alapan Bandopadhyay as the new home secretary.

"Yes, Bandyopadhyay has been made the new home secretary," she told reporters outside the state secretariat Nabanna.

On May 15, the Election Commission (EC) had relieved the then home secretary Atri Bhattacharya of his duties and asked the state chief secretary to handle the additional responsibility.

Bandyopadhyay, a former journalist, was handling the MSME and textile departments.

In a departure from her usual policy of bringing back bureaucrats and police officers, removed by Election Commission, to their old posts once the model code of conduct expired, Banerjee did not reinstate Bhattacharya as home secretary.

Saurav Das has been appointed the new state Chief Electoral Officer replacing Aariz Aftab.

Das was public health engineering, panchayats and rural development departments secretary..

Ajit ranjan Bardhan, who was the Principal Secretary of Youth Services and Sports, has been appointed Secretary of North Bengal Development Department (NBDD).

Banerjee also carried out a reshuffle of district magistrates.

--IANS

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