Om Prakash is new Chief Secy of Uttarakhand

Dehradun: Om Prakash, a 1987-batch IAS officer, took over the charge as chief secretary of Uttarakhand on Friday evening in Dehradun and became the 16th chief secretary of the hill state. Spelling out his priority after taking over, CS Om Prakash said, "In the time of covid-19 pandemic my priority would be to boost health infrastructure in all the 13 districts. Also boosting the economy and enhancing employment opportunities,,are two other top priority areas."

In the race of the coveted post, Om Prakash has been the front runner and his elevation from Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) to the post of chief secretary was expected in Uttarakhand. In a simple ceremony the outgoing CS Utpal Kumar Singh handed over the charge.

Talking about the politician and bureaucrats' fine balance, the CS said, " Let me also clarify that in the democratic set up the executives have to work in line y with the legislatures. Democracy has a place for both dissent and dialogue. In my opinion the situation of the absence of dialogue (referring to politicians and bureaucrats) must not happen."

The CS also stated that the state government has focused on expanding the road work and besides the Rishikesh-Karnaprayag rail line and the Char Dham road project. After assuming the office, Prakash held a meeting with all officials at the secretariat for reviewing the Covid-19 and preparation of the disaster mitigations.