Sri Vijaya Puram, August 11: Gyanesh Bharti, a 1998-batch AGMUT cadre IAS officer, has been appointed Chief Secretary of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands following the Union government’s approval of his premature repatriation to his parent cadre from the Election Commission of India.
The New Delhi establishment on Monday cleared Bharti’s repatriation before the completion of his central deputation tenure after the Ministry of Home Affairs, the cadre-controlling authority, sought his return to the AGMUT cadre. Immediately after the repatriation order, Bharti was appointed Chief Secretary of the Union Territory.
Bharti succeeds Chandra Bhushan Kumar, a 1995-batch AGMUT officer, who was appointed Union Secretary in the Ministry of Labour and Employment, leaving the Chief Secretary’s post vacant.
Bharti is currently serving as Deputy Election Commissioner at the Election Commission of India, a position he has held since August 26, 2025. His return to the AGMUT cadre marks his move from the poll panel to the top civil administrative position in the Union Territory.
The senior IAS officer has previously held several important administrative assignments. Before joining the Election Commission, he served as Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
Bharti has also served as Commissioner of the unified Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and previously held the post of Commissioner of the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC). His tenure as Commissioner of the unified MCD followed the merger of Delhi’s three municipal corporations in 2022.
Bharti also has prior administrative experience in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Early in his career, he served as Deputy Commissioner of Nicobar district from July 2002 to October 2003 and subsequently as Deputy Commissioner of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands from November 2003 to October 2005.
His earlier postings in the islands gave him experience of the Union Territory’s district-level administration and its geographically dispersed administrative structure.
A 1998-batch AGMUT officer, Bharti has since served in the Delhi government and the Union government in assignments covering areas including trade and taxes, urban administration, power, environment and forest matters, and women and child development.
As Chief Secretary, Bharti will head the senior-most level of the Union Territory’s civil administration and coordinate the functioning of its departments.
His appointment also brings back an officer with previous field experience in the islands to the top administrative post, following the elevation of Chandra Bhushan Kumar to the Union government.
Bharti’s appointment comes after the formal approval of his premature repatriation to the AGMUT cadre by the Union government. His appointment as Chief Secretary was made immediately after the repatriation order.
