Punjab witnesses administrative overhaul

The phase-wise reshuffling in Punjab continues with significant administrative changes affecting the provincial administration.

Six deputy commissioners (DCs) have been made Officers on Special Duty (OSD), while seven officers serving elsewhere have been transferred and posted to new districts as DCs.

This restructuring is part of a routine exercise aimed at bringing in a new team of officials aligned with the government's vision and agenda.

Among the key transfers is the appointment of Jahangir Anwar, who served closely with the PMLN government as Secretary Information Punjab under the then CM Shehbaz Sharif.

Anwar has been transferred and posted as Secretary to Government of Punjab, Environment Protection Department, with additional charge of Secretary to Government of Punjab, Tourism Department, currently under senior Minister Marium Aurangzeb, who also served as Federal Information Minister in the 2013-18 setup.

In another significant development, Lt-Gen (retd) Muhammad Abdul Aziz has been appointed as Chairman of Punjab Public Service Commission for a period of three years.

Sargodha Deputy Commissioner Capt (retd) Shoaib Ali has been transferred and directed to report to Services & General Administration Department for further orders. He has been replaced by Capt (retd) Aurangzeb Haider Khan, Additional Secretary, Chief Minister's Office, Punjab, who has been posted as Deputy Commissioner, Sargodha.

Dr Noor Muhammad Awan, Deputy Commissioner, Bhakkar, has been transferred and directed to report to Services & General Administration Department for further orders. He has been replaced by Ali Akbar, Deputy Secretary, Chief Minister's Office, Punjab, who has been posted as Deputy Commissioner, Bhakkar.

Similarly, Saima Ali, Chief of Section, Planning & Development Board, Punjab, has been posted as Deputy Commissioner, Sahiwal, while Capt (retd.) Samiullah Farooq, Deputy Commissioner, Jhelum, has been transferred and directed to report to Services & General Administration Department for further orders.

Syedah Ramallah Ali, Additional Secretary, Governor's Secretariat, Punjab, has been posted as Deputy Commissioner, Jhelum, while Layyah Deputy Commissioner Khalid Parvaiz has been transferred and directed to report to Services & General Administration Department for further orders.

Ameera Baidar, currently at the disposal of Chief Minister's Office, has been posted as Deputy Commissioner Layyah, while Sajjad Ahmad Khan, Deputy Commissioner, Mianwali, has been transferred and directed to report to Services & General Administration Department for further orders.

Khalid Javed Goraya, at the disposal of Director General, Lahore Development Authority (LDA), has been posted as Deputy Commissioner, Mianwali, while Muhammad Zeeshan Hanif, Deputy Commissioner, Okara, has been transferred and directed to report to Services & General Administration Department for further orders.

Capt (retd) Farrukh Attique Khan, Additional Secretary (Coordination) to Chief Secretary, Punjab, has been posted as Deputy Commissioner, Okara, while Muhammad Umer Sher, Additional Secretary Chief Minister's Office, Punjab, has been posted as Additional Secretary (Coordination) to Chief Secretary, Punjab.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 1^st, 2024.