New Chief Secretary Anu Garg assumes office, sets governance priorities on New Year

Bhubaneswar, Jan 1: Odisha’s newly appointed Chief Secretary, Anu Garg, formally assumed office on Thursday, the first day of the New Year, marking the beginning of her tenure with a clear focus on administrative efficiency and coordinated governance. Taking charge at Lok Seva Bhawan in Bhubaneswar, she extended warm New Year greetings to the people of Odisha and expressed her commitment to strengthening the state’s administrative framework from day one.

According to reports, soon after assuming office, Anu Garg met Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and held preliminary discussions on key governance and administrative issues. The interaction focused on priority areas, policy implementation and the overall direction of the state’s development agenda. She also held discussions with the Health Secretary to review ongoing programmes in the health sector and to identify areas requiring improvement and timely intervention.

As part of her first-day schedule, the Chief Secretary is slated to meet senior secretaries from various departments to identify high-priority projects and assess departmental needs. These meetings are expected to help streamline decision-making and improve inter-departmental coordination.

Emphasising the importance of teamwork, Anu Garg stated that the administration would collectively work towards introducing new initiatives and ensuring effective implementation. She underlined that maximum work would be taken up on the very first day, with special attention to project prioritisation, expenditure management and budgetary planning to achieve tangible results.