Couldn’t declare Priyanka ‘Pappu’ ?

It is being discussed that the NDA and others were unable to project or target Priyanka Gandhi as ‘Pappu’, unlike Rahul Gandhi. Additionally what is being seen is that she is being praised by other Parliamentarians.

On Good Governance Day, Govt launches 5 new  Digital Reforms

Union Minister of State Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions Dr Jitendra Singh on Thursday launched five major digital governance initiatives aimed at strengthening transparency, efficiency and citizen-centric administration.

Although the West Bengal Government has recommended  further extension in service to West Bengal Chief Secretary Manoj Pant,chances of 1991 batch IAS officer seems to be bleak.

As many as Eight officers of Indian Police Service (IPS) of various cadres and batches are retiring in December 2025. They are: Alok Raj of Bihar; Tadasha Mishra of Jharkhand; Pawan Kumar Shrivastava of Madhya Pradesh cadre; Paramraj Singh Umaranangal of Punjab; Ravi Gupta of Telangana; Lalhruaia Darlong of Tripura; Mohd Akil (HY:1989) and O P Singh (HY:1992).

There are vacancies of DG in BSF,BPR&D,NIA and one in MHA. Indication is that the new postings will be cleared next week.

If sources are to be believed CBIC will meet on December 30 to select new members. It is said that 15 names will be considered for the posts

The Income Tax Department will get legal powers to access emails, social media, and other digital spaces. The provision is part of the new Income Tax law to curb tax evasion and undisclosed income. These powers can be used only during searches and investigations with valid suspicion. The department is likely to start this exercise from April next year.

Saleem Ahmad assumed charge as the new Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL).

Speculations point to filling 46 IAS, 67 IPS, and 70 IFoS vacancies soon, with CM Mohan Charan Majhi coordinating with the Centre for administrative strengthening. New trends include emphasis on women empowerment projects, with whispers of bonus promotions for officers driving sustainable developments.

Jainendra Singh Kandhari will join as JS(TRU-1) in the Deptt of Revenue on deputation basis for a period of five years. He is a 2007 batch IRS(C&IT) Officer.

Sonal Bajaj has been appointed as Director, Finance in Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd. (NPCIL), Mumbai under the Department of Atomic Energy, on deputation basis for a period of five years. He is a 1998 batch IRS(C&IT) officer.

Civil services training hubs like Tiruchy’s study circle (25 years old) continue influencing aspirants, with alumni like IAS Jacintha Lazarus (executive director, South) and IPS R. Nishatani (DIG Intelligence) highlighting mentorship impacts.

Finance Minister Sitharaman discussed with CBDT and CBIC chairmen to stress AI integration for predictable tax regimes, launching a pilot project for real-time GST tracking. This Viksit Bharat initiative predicts 20% faster refunds and reduced litigation.

The Army is proposing the acquisition of 120 km range guided Pinaka Mk3 rockets for enhanced artillery capabilities, with Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) clearance sought. Final delivery of three AH-64E Apache helicopters is scheduled soon, boosting combat readiness. The Army placed orders worth ₹5,000 crore under Emergency Procurement (EP) for indigenous drones capable of operations in jamming and spoofing environments, based on post-Operation Sindoor trials. Contracts include ₹500 crore to Mishra Dhatu Nigam (MIDHANI) for loitering munitions, and ₹725 crore to NewSpace and SMPP for surveillance and kamikaze drones. IdeaForge and JSW (potentially for Shield AI V-BAT VTOL systems) are shortlisted.

Promotion Order issued for eligibility lists to ITI posts for Vigilance Year (VY) 2026. This promotes 45 Assistant Commissioners to Deputy Commissioners, effective January 1, 2026, with a focus on upskilling for digital tax enforcement.

 Seven missions by March 2026, including Gaganyaan G1 uncrewed test (Q1 2026, with Vyommitra humanoid), electric propulsion demo, quantum comms, and LVM3-M6/BlueBird-6 (Dec 24, 8:54 AM IST—ISRO’s 100th orbital launch). Trending: 2025 as “Gaganyaan Year” with 7,200+ tests completed; mixed year review notes delays but NISAR success and

CBDT’s guidance on the new Income Tax Act, 2025, trends toward easier compliance, with ITR forms notified by January 2026. Speculation points to a 15% drop in appeals due to reduced ambiguities.

 December month saw CAG urging IRS probationers on new departmental initiatives like faceless assessments and green tax incentives, predicting a shift to sustainable revenue models.

Six IAS officers of 2002 batch in Tamil Nadu belonging to Tamil Nadu  cadre have been promoted to the Principal Secretary Grade of IAS w e f January 1, 2026. The promoted officers are: Mrs Archana Patnaik, Mrs Sigy Thomas Vaidhyan, Dr M S Shanmugan, Mrs Reeta Harish Thakkar, C Samayamoorthy and Mrs Jayashree Muralidharan.

Eight IAS officers have been reshuffled in Assam. Sumit Sattawan has been posted as District Commissioner, Tinsukia, while Aayush Garg takes charge as District Commissioner, Cachar and Mridul Yadav will join as District Commissioner, Sivasagar. Similarly, Dibakar Nath is appointed as District Commissioner, Bongaigaon; Swapneel Paul as District Commissioner, Kamrup; Mrs Masanda Magdalin Pertin as Joint Secretary, Finance Department; Mrs Simi Karan as District Commissioner, Tamulpur and Aranyak Saikia will take over as District Commissioner, Karbi Anglong.

Rajesh Kumar Mishra has been promoted in the grade of Principal Commissioner of Customs & Indirect Taxes (PCCIT) (HAG) on a pro forma basis w e f February 1, 2025.

Seven IAS officers of 1995 batch in Tamil Nadu belonging to Tamil Nadu  cadre have been promoted to the Chief Secretary Grade of IAS w e f January 1, 2026. The promoted officers are: M A Siddique, Mrs R Jaya, Dr P Senthilkumar, Mrs Sandhya Venugopal Sharma, T Udhayachandran, Hitesh Kumar S Makwana and B Chandra Mohan.

Hirdesh Patel has been appointed as Deputy Controller of Accounts, Ministry of Home Affairs, New Delhi. He is a 2021 batch ICAS officer.

Five IAS officers have been given new postings in Rajasthan. Mrs Manju Rajpal has been appointed as PS, Agriculture & Horticulture and Panchayati Raj (Agriculture), while Siddhartha Mahajan is now Commissioner, Jaipur Development Authority, Jaipur and Mrs Anandi was made Secretary and Registrar, Cooperatives Department. Similarly, Babulal Goyal will be posted as Secretary, State Human Rights Commission and Rakesh Sharma will take charge as Commissioner and Joint Secretary, Information and Public Relations.

Temporary posts of Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) level have been created in Tamil Nadu for a period of one year w e f January 1, 2026. The posts include ACS/ Commissioner, Department of Economics and Statistics, ACS, Health and Family Welfare and ACS, School Education.

Temporary posts of Principal Secretary (PS) level have been created in Tamil Nadu for a period of one year w e f January 1, 2026. The posts include PS/ Commissioner, Disaster Management, PS to the Chief Minister and PS, Social Welfare and Women Empowerment in HAG scale.

Proof & Experimental Establishment (PXE), Chandipur, Balasore, Odisha invites applications for two posts of Junior Research Fellows in the field of Mechanical Engineering. Applications must reach latest by January 8, 2026.

Ministry of Culture, New Delhi is seeking two Consultants for Gyan Bharatam Mission. Details can be availed from https://culture.gov.in/.

Anupam Deepak Sonalkar has been transferred and given new posting at CGDA Hqs, Delhi Cantt. He is a 2008 batch IDAS officer.

Department of Defence Production has invited applications to fill the post of Contract Purchase Officer on deputation basis. Applications must reach latest by February 28, 2026. 

Applications have been invited for Public Procurement Management (onsite) for Directorate General of Shipping Details can be availed from https://www.dgshipping.gov.in/. Applications must reach latest by January 6, 2026.

Haryana Rail Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (HRIDC) has advertised the post of Joint General Manager-S&T for Gurugram. Details can be availed from www.indianrailways.gov.in and www.hridc.co.in.

World Bank has advertised the post of Deputy Chief Economist and Director, Private Markets for Washington, DC, United States. Applications must reach latest by January 9, 2026.

World Bank has advertised the post of ET Consultant-GFF Country Coordinator for Bangui, Central African Republic. Applications must reach latest by January 12, 2026.

Combined Recruitment Test (CRT) for twenty five vacancies of Company Prosecutor in Ministry of Corporate Affairs will be held on January 11, 2026. The test will be held at Ahmedabad, Bhopal, Chennai, Delhi, Dispur Guwahati), Jaipur, Jammu, Kochi, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Nagpur, Port Blair, Ranchi, and Vishakhapatnam from 10 am to 12 noon.

Jayesh Ranjan has been posted as Special Chief Secretary, Metropolitan Area & Urban Development (HMDA Limits) in Telangana relieving Chief Secretary K Ramakrishna Rao, who was holding it as a Full Additional Charge. He is a 1992 batch IAS officer.

IAS officers have been reshuffled in Telangana. Mrs M Harithahas been appointed as Secretary, Telangana Public Service Commission (TGPSC), while E V Narsimha Reddy joins as Managing Director, Musi River Development Corporation Ltd (MRDCL) and Garima Agrawal will hold the Full Additional Charge as the Collector & District Magistrate of Rajanna Sircilla. Similarly, G Lingya Naik has been appointed as Secretary, State Election Commission; Bhavesh Mishra will hold FAC of the post of Addl CEO, Industry & Investment Cell; Narayan Amit Malempati, IAS was posted as Additional Collector (Local Bodies), Narayanpet; Mrs A Nirmala Kanthi Wesley is placed in FAC of Director, Employment & Training; G Jitender Reddy will take charge as Additional Collector (Local Bodies), Hyderabad; P Kadhiravan as Additional Collector (Revenue), Hyderabad; D Hanumanthu Naik is placed in FAC of VC and MD, TG Scheduled Castes Cooperative Development Corporation Ltd.; G Veera Reddy was shifted as ED, TGIIC (LA) and G Lingya Naik joins as Secretary, State Election Commission.   

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will deliberate on “Human Capital for Viksit Bharat” with state chief secretaries at a two-day national conference in Delhi on December 27–28. The meeting is part of the Centre’s broader effort to align states with Vision 2047, focusing on capacity building, governance reform, and productivity enhancement. Behind this exercise is a new push from the PM’s Economic Advisory Council, steered by Dr. V. Anantha Nageswaran and Sanjeev Sanyal, who have been driving the policy rethink around skilling, regulatory simplification, and data-driven governance. The deliberations will also include special sessions on deregulation in states, leveraging technology in governance, agri stack integration, and strategies for post-LWE region development. The focus signals a coordinated shift toward modernizing India’s administrative and human capital architecture, making states active partners in translating the “Viksit Bharat” vision into actionable frameworks.

Two members of Non-State Civil Service of Gujarat: Avni Chittaranjan Vora and Tekchand Chatrabhuj Tirthani have been promoted as IAS against the Select List of 2024 and allocated Gujarat cadre.

Akhilesh Kumar Singh, Additional Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat Department, has been assigned additional charge of Civil Aviation Department in Bihar. He is a 2014 batch IAS officer of Bihar cadre.

B Shafiullah has been appointed as Vice Chairman  and MD of Telangana Minorities Finance Corporation (TMFC). He is a 2003 batch officer of Indian Forest Service (IFoS).

IAS officers have been posted as Zonal Commissioners in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) in Telangana. Accordingly, Bhorkhade Hemant Sahadeorao has been appointed Serilingampally Zonal Commissioner, while Apurv Chauhan will take over as Kukatpally Zonal Commissioner. Similarly, Sandeep Kumar Jha will join as Quthbullapur Zonal Commissioner; S Srinivas Reddy as Charminar Zonal Commissioner; G Mukunda Reddy as Golconda Zonal Commissioner; Priyanka Ala as Khairatabad Zonal Commissioner; Anuraag Jayanti as Rajendranagar Zonal Commissioner; Ravi Kiran as Secunderabad Zonal Commissioner; K Chandrakala as Shamshabad Zonal Commissioner and Hemant Keshav Patil as LB Nagar Zonal Commissioner; Sanchit Gangwar as Malkajgiri Zonal Commissioner and Radhika Gupta was shifted as Uppal Zonal Commissioner.

The appointed members of Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT), including Technical Members (Centre), Technical Members (State) and Judicial Members, have been allotted benches. Click the link below to see the complete list: https://whispersinthecorridors.com/pdf/GSTAT.pdf

Venkata Erinti Narayana has been appointed as an Additional Director (Non-Executive Independent) on the Board of Subex Limited.
 

Priya Ranjan, Executive Director, Steel Authority of India Limited, has been appointed as Director-in-Charge, Bokaro Steel Plant, Steel Authority of India Limited.

Mahendra Soni has been appointed as an Additional Director (Non-Executive Independent) on the Board of Rajasthan Tube Manufacturing Company Limited.

Milind Torawane, IAS, has resigned from the position of Managing Director of Gujarat Gas Limited.

 

Milind Torawane, IAS, has resigned from the position of Joint Managing Director of Gujarat State Petronet Limited.

CCI was deliberately made ineffective. All sectors now face similar threats like civil aviation.

Foreign competition in all important sectors has been deliberately driven out to benefit domestic business houses and now Indian market is effectively a supplier market rather than consumer market.

Nishant

He is the most respected spokes person of the BJP and I hope they give him more responsibility asap. Well deserved @shehzadpoonawalla bhai

Atul Sikand

Do the details of my passing out match with the official records?

The appellant gave his enrollment number and submitted that he had completed his Diploma in Civil Engineering from a particular University in 2014. He wanted to verify whether these details match with the official data records. The PIO informed that the UGC does not verify the Validation of documents and requested the appellant to approach the concerned University. The CIC observed that the Appellant did not seek for any information as envisaged under Section 2(f) of the RTI Act, rather he sought for clarification or confirmation of a speculative statement. While the PIO attempted to facilitate the Appellant by giving a clarification as though replying to a grievance petition, but the PIO ought to have specified that the Appellant has not asked for any information per se.

Comments

In purely legal terms, the role of the PIO is restricted to providing what is covered under the definition of the term “information” as defined under Section 2(f) of the RTI Act. It would be prudent for the PIO to examine whether the request of the applicant is within the parameters of section 2(f) of the RTI Act and take action accordingly.

Citation: Praveen Kumar v. University Grants Commission, Second Appeal No. CIC/UGCOM/A/2024/658054; Date of Decision: 13.10.2025

Dr Anuradha Verma (dranuradhaverma@yahoo.co.in) is a RTI Consultant currently working with IIM Vishakhapatnam. She has co-authored the books PIO’s Guide to RTI and Right to Information – Law and Practice. Her weekly article is being published since 2008 on this site. She offers consultancy on RTI matters and third party audit to individuals / organisations. Her other articles can be read at the website of RTI Foundation at the link https://www.rtifoundationofindia.com

Several former IPS and R&AW officers in the country are considred to be experts in the country.Enquiry revealed the names of following officers from R&AW- Amitabh Mathur, a 1977-batch IPS officer, Pinak Ranjan Chakravarty former 1977 batch IFS officer, The RAW officer named Shashi Bhushan Singh Tomar, Amar Bhushan briefly served in the BSF intelligence, State Special Branch and Intelligence Bureau and ended up with working in the Research and Analysis Wing for the next twenty-four years, R. Kumar RAS officer 1984 batch, Ravi Sinha who is also known as C.K. Sinha in a legal case, a prominent Indian Police Service (IPS) ,Shashi Bhushan Singh former R&AW head in Dhaka and Alok Tiwari. There are a few Neighbourhood experts also -Alok joshi, Ashok Sinha and Vivek Johri.

From the IB there are some officers  who were posted in Bangla Desh .They are also well versed in Bangladesh affairs. They are said to be Mssrs Sheel vardhan singh IPS 1986  Bihar cadre, Balbir  Singh 1996 batch MP cadre, Surendra Singh, Rama Kant  and Sumit.

Amitabh Mathur	P R Chakravarty	Shashi B S Tomar	Amar Bhushan	Ravi Sinha	Alok Tiwari	Vivek Johri