NewDelhi: Former IAS officer Radha Krishna Mathur on Thursday took oath as the first Lieutenant Governor of Union Territory of Ladakh, which came into existence after bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir.
The oath was administered by J&K High Court’s Chief Justice Gita Mittal in Leh.
RK Mathur’s appointment was made earlier but he was sworn-in as the Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh on Thursday as the J&K Reorganisation Act 2019 came into effect today.
Mathur, a 1977 batch IAS officer of the Tripura cadre, had retired as the Chief Information Commissioner in November 2018 after serving as Defence Secretary from 2013 to 2015. He was also the Chief Secretary of Tripura.
Neither Prime Minister Narendra Modi nor Home Minister Amit Shah were present at the oath-taking ceremony. PM Modi is in Gujrat at the Statue of Unity to commemorate the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel while Shah is in Delhi to flag off a ‘Run for Unity’ event.
Meanwhile, Girish Chandra Murmu will also take oath as the Lt Governor of Jammu and Kashmir later on Thursday.
Murmu, 59, a 1985 batch IAS officer of the Gujarat cadre, is seen as a close aide of Prime Minister Modi, having been his Principal Secretary when Modi was Gujarat Chief Minister.
Satya Pal Mailk, 73, the outgoing Governor of J&K has been moved as the Governor of Goa.
As the transformation of the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories take place, the IAS, IPS and other central service officers of J&K cadre will continue to serve in the two new Union Territories.
According to the J&K Reorganisation Act, the Lt Governors will decide about the provisional strength, composition and allocation of officers after the Union Territories are notified.
The Act says the state government employees will be able to seek option to serve in either of the two Union Territories and this transfer will be determined by the Lt Governor.
Bureau Report
Leave a Reply