New Delhi: The Union Government on Monday appointed new Secretaries in six Ministries including Steel, Environment and Petroleum. Punjab’s first woman Chief Secretary Vini Mahajan has been brought back to the Centre and appointed Secretary, Drinking Water and Sanitation. Mahajan is a 1987 batch IAS officer. Her husband Dinkar Gupta is an IPS officer and is currently posted as Chairman, Punjab Police Housing Corporation.

According to an official order, Pankaj Jain, an Assam-Meghalaya cadre IAS officer of 1990 batch, who was Additional Secretary in Department of Financial Services, will be the new Petroleum Secretary. Leena Nandan, a 1987 batch IAS officer of Uttar Pradesh cadre, has been appointed Environment Secretary. She will replace RP Gupta, who is retiring on December 31. At present, Nandan is Consumer Affairs Secretary.

Madhya Pradesh Cadre IAS of 1987 batch Sanjay Kumar Singh, who heads the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG) and Department of Pensions and Pensioners Welfare (DPPW), has been shifted to Steel Ministry as its Secretary.

Manoj Joshi, a Kerala cadre IAS officer of 1989 batch and currently Special Secretary in the Ministry of Food Processing Industries, will take over as Housing and Urban Affairs Secretary after Durga Shanker Mishra retires on December 31. Bharat Lal, a 1988 batch officer of Indian Forest Service, who is presently an Additional Secretary in Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, will be the new Secretary in Lokpal.

Eight officers in the rank of Special Secretary were promoted as Secretary. The notification for these transfers was issued on Monday by the Department of Personnel and Training, Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, the Government of India. /BI/