Vyas resigns as advisor to JK governor; likely to be made UPSC member

The advisor to Jammu and Kashmir governor, B B Vyas, Wednesday submitted his resignation to pave the way for consideration of his name as member of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), officials said.

Vyas, a 1986 batch IAS officer from Jammu and Kashmir cadre, is likely to fly to the national capital soon for completing the formalities of filing his nomination so that the process of considering his name for the post can be initiated by the government.

The governor is yet to accept his resignation, they said.

The UPSC has eight members, including its chairperson Arvind Saxena. The commission can have upto 11 members.

The 61-year-old, originally a resident of Rajasthan, was slated to retire in November 2017 but the Personnel Ministry amended the service rules to provide extension of three months on the request of the then chief minister, Mehbooba Mufti.

He was given another three month extension and was subsequently given another one-year extension in May 2018.

On November 9, Governor Satya Pal Malik carried out a major reshuffle in portfolios of his advisors after the induction of fourth advisor KK Sharma.

B B Vyas was divested of the prestigious portfolios of General Administration Department, Power Development Department and Finance and another advisor Khurshid Ahmad Ganai of Public Works and Public Health, Irrigation and Flood Control.

He was appointed on June 20 as an advisor by the then governor N N Vohra and the present governor continued with his services.