Two undertakings headless even after IAS reshuffle

MUMBAI: Two premier State - run undertakings - the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) and the City and Industrial Development Corporation (Cidco) - remain headless even as the state government on Tuesday reshuffled 12 IAS officials.
The post of the chief executive officer (CEO) of the MIDC has been allowed to remain vacant for over a month, with the state government unable to decide on a candidate.
Though the MIDC has two joint CEOs, the unusually long delay in the appointment of a chief executive has raised eyebrows in Mantralaya. Industries minister Patangrao Kadam is chairman of the MIDC.
The state administration is also unable to find an officer to head Cidco after the present MD Anand Kulkarni was transferred to the Lok Sabha secretariat recently.
"These two state bodies are crucial to the development of the state," a senior bureaucrat said. "That no appointments have been made to the top posts only reflects on the administration’s efficiency."
In the case of Cidco, which is a planning authority for the Navi Mumbai area, the delay in appointing the head will have a negative impact on the first Special Economic Zone in the state, which is coming up in Dronagiri.
The state government also does not seem to be in any great hurry to fill the vacancies in three crucial state offices. The state’s publicity department is virtually headless after the transfer of senior IAS official Bhushan Gagrani as joint CEO of the MIDC.
The post of the CEO of the Mumbai Housing and Area Development Board has also been allowed to stay vacant for some time now. This post was earlier held by Suresh Karande, who was then shifted as CEO to the Mumbai Repair and Reconstruction Board.
Interestingly, senior IAS officer A K Lakhina has not been given a posting after his transfer from Cidco in Febuary.