Gurugram: A late night rejig in CM Nayab Singh Saini’s office Thursday saw IAS (Retd.) Rajesh Khullar, who holds the rank of Chief Principal Secretary to CM (CPSCM), retaining the most expansive portfolio among all officers in the CMO. The exercise is a clear signal that the retired officer continues to be the most trusted hand in the Saini establishment.
The order dated 16 April 2026, was issued under the signature of the CPSCM himself and lays out the work distribution of departments in the office of the chief minister.
Khullar holds charge of 18 departments, including some of the most consequential portfolios in the state—Administration of Justice, Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Ayush, Energy, Excise and Taxation, Financial Institutions Finance and Credit Control and Planning, General Administration, Personnel and Training, Hospitality and Tourism, Health, Home, Industries and Commerce, Information and Public Relations, Languages and Culture, Irrigation and Water Resources, Medical Education and Research, Parliamentary Affairs, Law and Legislative, Raj Bhawan Affairs, Revenue and Disaster Management, and Town and Country Planning and Urban Estates.
He also holds overall charge of the CMO, the CMO Estt., and all matters relating to legislative business including legislative proposals before the Council of Ministers and the issue of Ordinances, besides subjects not allotted to any other officer.
A 1992-batch IAS officer, Arun Kumar Gupta, designated as Principal Secretary to CM (PSCM), holds the second-largest portfolio with 10 departments: Civil Aviation, Citizens Resources Information Department (CRID), Environment Forests and Wildlife, Food Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs, Jails, Mines and Geology, Public Works (Building and Roads), Social Justice Empowerment SCs and BCs Welfare and Antyodaya (SEWA), Transport, and Urban Local Bodies.
He is also tasked with matters related to implementation of CM Announcements.
The most closely-watched change in the order is the assignment given to Ajay Kumar, a relatively junior IAS officer of the 2013 batch who was recently shifted from his posting as Deputy Commissioner, Gurugram, to serve as Deputy Principal Secretary to CM (DPSCM-II).
Ajay Kumar has been handed a set of seven departments—Co-operation, Elections, Fisheries, Foreign Cooperation, Housing for All, Sainik and Ardh Sainik Welfare, and Women and Child Development—along with important monitoring responsibilities including the Kurukshetra Development Board, monitoring of Budget Announcements, monitoring of incomplete projects, and monitoring the performance of various departments under CM Window.
This portfolio was previously handled by Saket Kumar, a senior IAS officer of the 2005 batch who was unceremoniously removed from the CMO in the wake of IDFC First Bank fraud case. Saket Kumar was subsequently packed off to an inconsequential posting as Commissioner and Secretary in the Archives Department, and the vacancy his removal created in the CMO has now formally been filled by Ajay Kumar.
Yash Pal, an IAS officer of 2011 batch, serving as DPSCM-I, holds the portfolio of Architecture, Archives, Development and Panchayats, Heritage and Tourism, Labour, Printing and Stationery, Public Health Engineering, School Education, and Sports, along with the Saraswati Heritage Board.
OSD to CM, Raj Nehru, looks after Department of Future, Higher Education, Youth Empowerment and Entrepreneurship. HCS officer Vivek Kalia, holding the rank of HCS OSD to CM, has been given charge of CM Window (1) and Jan Samvaad.
Haryana Civil Service (HCS) officer Sudhanshu Gautam, designated OSD to CM, has been assigned allotment of government houses (except Type-V and Panchkula), CM Relief Fund, HRDF and other sanctions, HRMS and Online Transfer Policy, and Wakf Board.
HCS officer Rakesh Sandhu, OSD to CM, holds CM Window (2) and Grievances, while HCS officer Narender Pal Malik, also OSD to CM, has been given charge of CM Announcements.
(Edited by Nardeep Singh Dahiya)
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