E-Paper
Anurag Verma assumes charge as Punjab chief secretary
Verma, a 1993-batch IAS officer, succeeds Vijay Kumar Janjua of the 1989 batch, who retired on Friday
Senior IAS officer Anurag Verma took charge as the Punjab chief secretary in Chandigarh on Saturday.
Verma, a 1993-batch IAS officer, succeeds Vijay Kumar Janjua of the 1989 batch, who retired on June 30.
Also read: Punjab: Seven IAS, one PCS officer given additional charges
Janjua and other IAS officers, including Malwinder Singh Jaggi, Kumar Rahul and Sonali Giri, were present at the Punjab Civil Secretariat when Verma took charge.
Verma said his priority will be to ensure “clean, efficient, responsive and transparent administration besides giving thrust to health and education sectors along with all-round development of the state”.
He said Punjab, being a border state and food bowl of the country, assumes significance for the country and added that with the support of civil and police officers besides government employees, will make Punjab a front ranking state .
Verma, who belongs to Chalela village in Patiala district, is a gold medallist from Thapar University, Patiala, in electronics and communication engineering. He bagged the overall 7th rank in the UPSC Civil Services Examination in 1993.
Earlier, he was holding the charge of additional chief secretary home, industries and commerce, legal and legislative affairs, information technology and investment promotion.
He has served the state in various capacities, including in rural development and panchayats, excise and taxation, revenue. He took the step of computerising revenue land records and establishing Fard Kendras in the state as special secretary of revenue. While serving as excise and taxation commissioner, he made it simple and transparent for people to pay their taxes.
In his capacity as the finance commissioner for rural development and panchayat, he carried out the MGNREGA scheme’s ground-level implementation.
He has served as the deputy commissioner of Bathinda, Ludhiana and Jalandhar districts.
