UP chief secretary’s tenure extended

Chief minister Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday gave a three-month extension to the tenure of chief secretary Alok Ranjan.

Chief minister Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday gave a three-month extension to the tenure of chief secretary Alok Ranjan.

The chief secretary said he would devote this time to improve basic facilities across the state with power supply, drinking water and other public issues his top priority.

“As summer is about to begin, I want people in all cities, including those in Gautam Budh Nagar, to get uninterrupted power supply. I want to do my best to provide basic amenities in all districts. I also want to improve living conditions in drought-hit Bundelkhand, where people do not have access to clean drinking water,” said Ranjan, a 1978-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer.

He had taken over as UP chief secretary on May 30, 2014, replacing Javed Usmani. Before taking up the post, he was the state’s infrastructure and industrial development commissioner and agriculture production commissioner.

Since he took charge as chief secretary, Ranjan often visits Noida, an industrial town that is among his priorities, according to officials. He visits the city frequently, reviewing infrastructure projects underway in the twin cities of Noida and Greater Noida.

“I made sure that metro projects in Noida stayed on fast-track. I am happy that the 30-km Noida-Greater Noida Metro link currently under construction will be ready next year before its scheduled deadline of 2018. In the coming three months, I will further expedite work on this project. The aim of this government is to pace up infrastructure and industrial projects so that we can provide better facilities and also create jobs,” said Ranjan, a graduate from Delhi’s St Stephen’s College and MBA from IIM-Ahmedabad.