J Radhakrishnan was transferred to the food department on Sunday.
Chennai:
In a major reshuffle, Tamil Nadu Health Secretary J Radhakrishnan was transferred to the Food Department on Sunday, taking the government transferring a total of 37 IAS officers.
Additional Chief Secretary Home, Prohibition and Excise Department SK Prabhakar has been posted as Additional Chief Secretary/Commissioner of Revenue Administration. K Phanindra Reddy, Additional Chief Secretary/Commissioner, Commercial Tax has replaced Prabhakar in the Home Department.
Principal Secretary, Health and Family Welfare Department, Radhakrishnan has now been posted as Principal Secretary, Cooperation, Food and Consumer Protection Department.
P Senthil Kumar, Principal Secretary/Officer on Special Duty, Health and Family Welfare has been posted as Principal Secretary, Health Department in place of Radhakrishnan. Kumar is a 1995 batch IAS officer. A post-graduate in agriculture, the 53-year-old officer also holds a doctorate degree.
Mr. Radhakrishnan, who has experience in handling crisis situations, was brought back as health secretary on June 12, 2020, at a time when cases of the new virus were on the rise during the first wave of COVID-19.
Radhakrishnan, 55, a veterinary doctor (MVSC), was the health secretary from September 2012 to February 2019. He was replaced by Beela Rajesh and Radhakrishnan exactly 2 years back.
After DMK took over in May 2021 and transfer of officials, the Madras High Court had observed that continuity is maintained by the government in relation to the office of the state health secretary. This was to ensure that there is no loss of momentum in continuing the fight against COVID-19, the court had said while hearing a matter related to the virus.
Sri Radhakrishnan was the District Collector of Nagapattinam when the 2004 tsunami ravaged the coastal region and was credited for prompt relief and rehabilitation measures. A 1992 batch IAS officer, he has also been a special nodal officer for the Greater Chennai Corporation, coordinating coronavirus-related issues with the civic body chief.
Sri Radhakrishnan was among the top state officials, who in 2016 treated former chief minister J Jayalalithaa at the Apollo Hospital here until her death in December that year. A total of 37 IAS officers have been transferred.
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