Chandigarh: The Punjab government has sent the names of three IAS officers to the UT administration for the position of finance secretary.

All three officers, Basant Garg, Diprava Lakra, and Daljit Singh Mangat, are Punjab cadre IAS officers from the 2005 batch. Garg is currently on deputation with the central government, with his tenure likely to end on 10th September.

The post became vacant after the administration relieved the former UT Finance Secretary, Namdeorao Zade, a Punjab cadre IAS officer, on 19th June. After his tenure ended in May, he was given a one-month extension due to the Lok Sabha elections, as he was the Chief Electoral Officer of Chandigarh.

Zade, a 2002 batch Punjab cadre IAS officer, had joined the UT administration in May 2021 for a three-year tenure. In May 2024, his tenure was extended by one month in light of the Lok Sabha elections, where he served as the Chief Electoral Officer of Chandigarh.

In the last week of June, Punjab had sent a panel of three Punjab cadre IAS officers to fill the post: Amit Dhaka (2006 batch), Mohammed Tayyab (2007 batch), and Amit Kumar (2008 batch). However, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs rejected this panel and requested a fresh one. Following this, the UT administration sought a new panel from the Punjab government. /BI