Centre Promotes 16 Rajasthan RAS Officers to IAS: Gopal Ram Birda, Meghna Chaudhary Among Selectees
The Centre has notified the promotion of 16 Rajasthan RAS officers to the IAS, including 13 from the 1998 batch and three from the 1999 batch. Four officers selected through special selection are still awaiting state government recommendations.
Centre Notifies Promotion of 16 Rajasthan RAS Officers to IAS
Jaipur: The Central Government has notified the promotion of 16 Rajasthan Administrative Service (RAS) officers to the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), marking a significant development in the state’s administrative cadre. The select list includes 13 officers from the 1998 batch and three from the 1999 batch, with the officers currently serving in several important departments and administrative institutions across Rajasthan.
The promoted officers hold positions in areas including revenue administration, registration and stamps, tribal development, technical education, animal husbandry, food and civil supplies, urban development and the Chief Minister’s Office. Among those included in the list are Gopal Ram Birda, Meghna Chaudhary, Om Prakash Jain, Rajesh Singh, Anju Rajpal and Mahaveer Kharadi.
The promotion process also includes a development concerning Gopal Ram Birda, whose case had reportedly been kept pending because of a departmental inquiry. According to the information available, a court stayed the inquiry, following which the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) decided to grant him promotion.
The notification represents an important career milestone for the officers, who entered the state administrative service and have now been selected for induction into the IAS through the prescribed promotion process.
Gopal Ram Birda Included After Court Stay on Departmental Inquiry
Gopal Ram Birda, a 1998-batch RAS officer, is among the 16 officers promoted to the IAS. He is currently serving as Additional Director General at Jawahar Kala Kendra in Jaipur, a prominent cultural institution in Rajasthan.
Birda’s name had reportedly been kept in a sealed envelope during the selection process because of a departmental inquiry. His case remained pending while the inquiry was under way, according to the supplied information.
The situation changed after Birda obtained a court stay on the inquiry. Following the court’s intervention, the DoPT decided to grant him promotion, allowing his name to be included in the latest list.
His promotion is among the notable developments in the selection process because his case had faced an additional procedural hurdle. However, the precise terms of the court order and the details of the departmental inquiry are not included in the available information.
List of 13 Rajasthan RAS Officers From the 1998 Batch Promoted to IAS
The largest group in the latest promotion list consists of 13 officers from the 1998 batch of the Rajasthan Administrative Service. They are currently serving in different departments and institutions across the state.
1. Gopal Ram Birda
Gopal Ram Birda is serving as Additional Director General at Jawahar Kala Kendra, Jaipur. His inclusion in the IAS promotion list follows the court’s stay on the departmental inquiry that had reportedly held up consideration of his case.
2. Meghna Chaudhary
Meghna Chaudhary is serving as Additional Inspector General in the Registration and Stamps Department, with responsibility for administration at Ajmer. Her current assignment is linked to the administrative functioning of the state’s registration and stamps establishment.
3. Om Prakash Jain
Om Prakash Jain is serving as Director of the Tribal Research and Training Institute, Manikya Lal Verma, in Udaipur. The institute is associated with research and training relating to tribal communities and development.
4. Rajesh Singh
Rajesh Singh is serving as Member of the Board of Revenue in Ajmer. The Board of Revenue is a state-level institution dealing with revenue administration and related matters.
5. Mukesh Kumar Sharma
Mukesh Kumar Sharma is serving as Secretary of the Rajasthan State Information Commission in Jaipur. His current responsibilities involve the administrative functioning of the commission.
6. Mahendra Kumar Sharma
Mahendra Kumar Sharma is serving as Joint Secretary in the Technical Education Department in Jaipur. His assignment involves departmental administration in the technical education sector.
7. Anju Rajpal
Anju Rajpal is serving as Joint Secretary to the Chief Minister of Rajasthan. She is the sister of Manju Rajpal, a 2000-batch IAS officer who is currently serving as Principal Secretary for Agriculture and Horticulture. Anju Rajpal’s promotion adds another officer holding a key administrative assignment in the state government to the IAS cadre.
8. Vivek Kumar
Vivek Kumar is serving as Additional Inspector General (Administration) in the Registration and Stamps Department in Jaipur. His responsibilities are connected with the department’s administrative functioning.
9. Madan Lal Nehra
Madan Lal Nehra is serving as Member of the Board of Revenue in Ajmer. His promotion brings another officer from the 1998 RAS batch serving in the institution into the IAS.
10. Dinesh Kumar Jangid
Dinesh Kumar Jangid is serving as Joint Secretary in the Animal Husbandry Department in Jaipur. His current assignment involves administrative responsibilities in the state’s animal husbandry sector.
11. Poonam Prasad Sagar
Poonam Prasad Sagar is serving as Additional Commissioner in the Food and Civil Supplies Department in Jaipur. The department handles matters relating to food distribution and the supply of essential commodities.
12. Ummed Singh
Ummed Singh is serving as Officer on Special Duty (SA) to Rajasthan Cabinet Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore. According to the supplied information, Rathore handles the Industries and Commerce, Youth Affairs and Sports departments in the state government. In his current role, Ummed Singh supports the minister’s administrative and departmental responsibilities.
13. Mahaveer Kharadi
Mahaveer Kharadi is serving as Additional Commissioner-II in the Tribal Area Development Department in Udaipur. He is also the president of the Rajasthan Administrative Service Association. His promotion is a significant development for the RAS community, of which he has been an association leader.
Three Officers From the 1999 RAS Batch Also Promoted
Alongside the 13 officers from the 1998 batch, three officers from the 1999 batch have been included in the IAS promotion list. They are currently serving in urban development and departmental administration roles in Rajasthan.
14. Dr Bhagchand Badhal
Dr Bhagchand Badhal is serving as Additional Commissioner in the Jaipur Development Authority. The authority is responsible for urban planning and development-related functions in Jaipur.
15. Aslam Sher Khan
Aslam Sher Khan is serving as Joint Secretary in the Minority Affairs and Waqf Department in Jaipur. His current assignment involves departmental administration relating to minority affairs and waqf matters.
16. Narendra Kumar Bansal
Narendra Kumar Bansal is serving as Additional Commissioner in the Jaipur Municipal Corporation. His role involves administrative responsibilities within the city’s municipal governance structure.
Together, the 16 officers represent two RAS batches and a range of administrative assignments across Rajasthan. Their promotions mark their induction into the IAS through the state service promotion route.
Four Officers Selected Through Special Selection Still Await Recommendations
While the promotion of the 16 RAS officers has been notified, a separate matter involving four officers selected through the special selection process remains pending. According to the information available, the Rajasthan government has yet to forward their names to the DoPT for further action.
Interviews for the special selection process were held in December 2025. Of the 20 officers who appeared for the interviews, four were selected against vacancies for 2024. However, their names have reportedly not been recommended to the Centre by the state government, despite approximately ten months having passed since their selection.
The delay has attracted attention because the selection process for the 2025 vacancies is also due. The pending recommendations represent a separate stage of IAS induction from the promotion list of 16 RAS officers.
While the 16 officers covered by the latest notification have been promoted, the four officers selected through the special selection route are still awaiting the state government’s recommendation to the DoPT. The reasons for the delay have not been specified in the available information.
What the Promotions Mean for Rajasthan’s Administrative Cadre
The promotion of 16 RAS officers to the IAS marks an important step in the progression of Rajasthan’s state administrative cadre. Officers recruited into the RAS can be inducted into the IAS through the prescribed promotion process, subject to eligibility requirements, selection procedures and applicable service rules.
The latest list includes officers serving in a broad range of assignments, from the Board of Revenue and the Registration and Stamps Department to tribal development, food and civil supplies, technical education and municipal administration. Their induction into the IAS represents a significant career development after years of service in the state administration.
The separate delay affecting four officers selected through special selection remains unresolved in the information provided. Their cases will require further action by the state government before the recommendations can proceed to the Centre.
