New Gurugram DC to focus on traffic, road safety

The newly appointed deputy commissioner (DC) of Gurugram said his key focus in the city will be on alleviating traffic congestion, enhancing road safety, and improving urban services. Kumar said urban issues like solid waste management, traffic regulation, and the improvement of public spaces will also be on his priority list.

Ajay Kumar, a 2013-batch IAS officer, succeeds Nishant Kumar Yadav, who has been transferred to serve as the DC of Chandigarh. Ajay Kumar is expected to assume his role by the end of this week.

The new DC is originally from Una in Himachal Pradesh and holds an engineering degree in electronics and communication from Delhi College of Engineering and an MBA from IIM Kozhikode. Before joining the Indian Administrative Services, he worked as a software engineer at IBM. His administrative experience includes postings in Rewari, Sirsa, and Sonipat as a sub-divisional magistrate and most recently as the DC of Rohtak, Bhiwani, Mahendragarh, and Nuh.

Meanwhile, the newly appointed commissioner of Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG), Ashok Kumar Garg, has expressed his resolve to tackle sanitation issues in the city.

Garg is a 2009-batch IAS officer and is set to replace Narhari Singh Bangar as MCG Commissioner. His previous experiences include serving as a commissioner to the Municipal Corporation of Manesar (MCM) and MCG joint commissioner. “I plan to organize stakeholder meetings to formulate clear strategies for improving sanitation across the city,” Garg said, noting that the city’s sanitation issues require a collaborative approach with input from local RWAs and other civic bodies.

Outgoing deputy commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav reflected on his tenure in Gurugram, which began in February 2022, marking a challenging but impactful period. “My time in Gurugram was filled with learning experiences, including handling two major elections this year and overseeing the city’s structural audits to boost confidence among homebuyers,” Yadav said. He talked about the measures taken to address urban flooding and waterlogging issues.

The recent administrative reshuffle across Haryana has brought in new officials to key roles. Renu Sogan, a 2019-batch IAS officer currently serving as HSVP administrator, will replace Garg as the MCM commissioner. Additionally, Munish Sharma, who held dual responsibilities as additional CEO of the Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) and CEO of Gurugram Metropolitan City Bus Limited (GMCBL), has been appointed DC of Charkhi Dadri.