Bhubaneswar: The state government today appointed senior IAS officer Manoj Ahuja as the new Chief Secretary of Odisha.

Manoj Ahuja, a 1990-batch IAS officer, has been appointed as the Chief Secretary of Odisha and Secretary to the General Administration and Public Grievances Department, said a state government notification today.

Ahuja will take charge from incumbent Chief Secretary Pradeep Kumar Jena, who is scheduled to retire on June 30, said a notification issued by the General Administration department.

Ahuja was recently repatriated to Odisha, his parent cadre, by the Centre as per the request of the state government.

Before his repatriation, Ahuja was working as Secretary to the Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare at the Centre.

Ahuja will attend superannuation on December 31 this year. A native of Punjab, Ahuja has done BE in Mechanical Engineering and Master’s degree in Business Administration.

As a bureaucrat, Ahuja had begun his career as Sub-Collector. He had worked as Collector and District Magistrate of Khurda in Odisha.

Ahuja had also acted as Commissioner-cum-Secretary to Steel & Mines and Sports & Youth Services Departments in the state.

The senior IAS officer was also Commissioner, Commercial Taxes, in Odisha and Principal Secretary to the Cooperation Department before central deputation in 2017.

Pradeep Kumar Jena, the Chief Secretary of Odisha and Secretary to General Administration and Public Grievances Department, is allowed to retire from government service with effect from June 30, said the state government in another notification.

Jena, a 1989-batch IAS officer, had been appointed as the Chief Secretary of Odisha on February 26, 2023.

He was scheduled to retire from service on December 31 last year. However, the state government had extended the service period of Jena by six months.