State appoints Shekar Singh as Nashik’s Kumbh Mela commissioner

As Kumbh Mela Commissioner, Singh is tasked with the responsibilities of avoiding stampedes and maintaining a smooth flow of the crowd of devotees

MUMBAI: The state government has appointed Shekhar Singh as the commissioner of Kumbh Mela in Nashik. Seven other IAS officers were also transferred on Tuesday.

Shekar Singh

Singh was previously the commissioner of Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation and, during the COVID-19 pandemic, he served as the district collector of Satara until 2022. As Kumbh Mela Commissioner, Singh is tasked with the responsibilities of avoiding stampedes and maintaining a smooth flow of the crowd of devotees.

The Kumbh Mela will be held in Nashik and Trimbakeshwar in 2026 and 2027. The state has also constituted a Kumbh Mela authority similar to the Prayagraj Mela authority in Uttar Pradesh.

M Devendra Singh, the district collector of Ratnagiri, has been appointed as the member secretary of the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board, Mumbai.

Nashik district collector Jalaj Sharma is appointed as metropolitan commissioner of Nashik Metropolitan Region Development Authority, Nashik. Meanwhile, Jalgaon collector Ayush Prasad is posted as the district collector of Nashik. The CEO of Thane Zilla Parishad, Rohan Ghughe, has been appointed as the district collector of Jalgaon.

In Mumbai, the state transferred Sanjay Kolte, the managing director of Shivshahi Rehabilitation Project, to be sugar commissioner in Pune.

The joint managing director of MSRDC, Manuj Jindal, has been appointed as the district collector of Ratnagiri in place of M Devender Singh.