Mumbai, Oct 7 (IANS) In a minor bureaucratic reshuffle, the Maharashtra government on Tuesday transferred and appointed seven senior IAS officers to new positions across the state.

According to an official notification, M. Devendra Singh, District Collector of Ratnagiri, has been appointed as Member Secretary of the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) in Mumbai.

Shekhar Singh, Municipal Commissioner of the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation, has been posted as Commissioner of the Kumbh Mela, Nashik, ahead of the preparations for the 2027 Simhastha.

Jalaj Sharma, currently the District Collector of Nashik, will now serve as Metropolitan Commissioner of the Nashik Metropolitan Region Development Authority (NMRDA), while Ayush Prasad, District Collector of Jalgaon, has been transferred as District Collector of Nashik.

Rohan Ghughe, Chief Executive Officer of Zilla Parishad, Thane, has been appointed as District Collector of Jalgaon, replacing Prasad. Sanjay Kolte, Managing Director of the Shivshahi Punarvasan Prakalp Ltd (SRPL), Mumbai, will take charge as Sugar Commissioner, Pune, filling a vacant post.

Manoj Jindal, Joint Managing Director of the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC), Mumbai, has been appointed as District Collector of Ratnagiri.

The transfers come soon after a high-level review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis regarding preparations for the Nashik–Trimbakeshwar Simhastha Kumbh Mela 2027.

Fadnavis had emphasised that the Kumbh Mela is not just a major administrative event but also a symbol of India’s faith and cultural tradition, underscoring the need for early coordination and planning.

These postings also gain significance as Maharashtra gears up for the long-delayed local body elections, expected to be held after Diwali. The elections are likely to be a political litmus test for all major parties, given the vast administrative control currently exercised by appointed officials.

The Supreme Court had directed the state government to complete elections to 29 municipal corporations, 32 of the 34 Zilla Parishads, 248 municipal councils, and 336 of the 351 Panchayat Samitis by January 31, 2026.

–IANS

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