Manoj Ahuja, The New CS of Odisha

Bhubaneswar: Senior IAS officer Manoj Ahuja assumed charge as the new Chief Secretary of Odisha. Ahuja, a 1990-batch IAS officer of Odisha cadre, succeeded the outgoing Chief Secretary Pradeep Kumar Jena at Lok Seva Bhavan in Bhubaneswar on Sunday.

IAS PK Jena officially handed over the charge to Ahuja today at 3:30 pm, extending a warm welcome to his successor and wishing him all the best. Earlier in the week, the Central Government repatriated Ahuja from his position as Secretary in the Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare to his home cadre.

Ahuja has previously held various positions, including Joint Director (Personnel Training/Personnel & General Administration) at the Centre, and Commissioner-cum-Secretary for the Steel and Mines and Sports and Youth Services Departments in Odisha. He has also been the Chairman of the Central Board of Secondary Education, Ministry of Education, at the rank of Secretary to the Government of India.

Ahuja has a degree of B.E. in Mechanical Engineering from the Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, Patiala, an MBA from Punjab University, Chandigarh, and a Master’s in Public Administration with a focus on International Development from Harvard University, USA. Acknowledged for his proficiency and leadership qualities, Ahuja was named an ex officio member of the ICRISAT Board on April 1, 2022.