Sri Vijaya Puram, Oct. 21: The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has transferred senior Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer M.K. Kumar from Jammu and Kashmir to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, with the officer directed to take up his new assignment with immediate effect.
Kumar, a 2006-batch officer of the AGMUT cadre, is currently serving as Chief Conservator of Forests (CCF) in Jammu and Kashmir. He has been asked to submit his joining report to the Ministry following the transfer.
According to the Ministry’s IFS Civil List 2026, Kumar has been serving as CCF for Wildlife Protection, Research and Training in Jammu and Kashmir since September 29, 2025. He holds the Level-14 pay grade, with a pay scale of ₹1,44,200 to ₹2,18,200.
Over the course of his career, Kumar has held several forest and wildlife administration assignments in Jammu and Kashmir. He served as Regional Wildlife Warden, Jammu, from October 2019 before moving to the post of Chief Conservator of Forests in 2024. His subsequent assignment was as CCF, Wildlife Protection, Research and Training, in Jammu and Kashmir.
Kumar holds an M.Sc. and a Ph.D. His transfer brings a senior forest service officer to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, where forest conservation, wildlife protection and biodiversity management are important areas of administration.
For the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, expectations from the appointment extend to forest conservation, wildlife protection and the management of ecologically sensitive areas, particularly amid the proposed Great Nicobar Island development project. The project, which includes a transshipment port, an international airport, a township and a power plant, has drawn attention to the challenge of balancing strategic and economic ambitions with the protection of the island’s tropical forests, biodiversity and wildlife habitats. Kumar’s experience in forest and wildlife administration will be closely watched as the Islands navigate these competing priorities. Key expectations include ensuring that forest clearances and conservation measures are implemented effectively, ecological concerns receive due consideration, and development proceeds within applicable environmental safeguards.
