Mr Dhaval Pandya, currently serving as Additional Collector of Kutch and Deputy Controller of Civil Defence (Kutch), has been promoted to the Indian Administrative Service (IAS). The promotion was confirmed through a notification issued on July 3 by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) under the Union Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions.
A member of the Gujarat State Civil Services since August 2005, Mr. Pandya began his administrative career in 2008 as Mamlatdar of Rajkot Rural. An engineering graduate (B.Tech), he has held important urban administrative roles such as Deputy Municipal Commissioner in Surat and Vadodara.
Officer Pandya is also recognized for his critical role in enhancing civil defence preparedness in Kutch ahead of Operation Sindoor and the subsequent retaliatory actions from Pakistan. Notably, he launched Gujarat’s first Braille civil defence module for the differently abled.
In a separate development, Mr. Hitesh Patel, BJP’s media convener for Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar and popularly known as ‘Pochi’, has been appointed to two key advisory panels — the Zonal Railway Users Consultative Committee (ZRUCC) and the Telecom Advisory Committee (TAC). He has been nominated to the ZRUCC under the Special Interest category.
Following the announcement, Mr. Patel expressed his gratitude to the BJP’s state and central leadership, as well as to Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, for their trust and support.
