Rajiv Gauba, the new cab-sec

Finally, the mist has cleared. Rajiv Gauba, a 1982-batch IAS officer of the Jharkhand cadre, has taken over as the new Cabinet Secretary. Gauba has a graduate degree and is a gold medallist in Physics (BSc) from Patna University. He was the Chief Secretary of Jharkhand for fifteen months before he joined the Urban Development Ministry on April 1, 2016. He served as the Collector and District Magistrate of Nalanda, Muzaffarpur and Gaya districts in the undivided state of Bihar. Gauba was credited as being the architect of the labour reforms in Jharkhand, and helping to bring down violence in Maoist affected areas in the mineral-rich state. He gained more reputation with his stint at the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change. What he did in Jharkhand as Chief Secretary is still remembered. He carried out landmark reforms like self-certification and third party inspection. Under this, a business could get self-audited by a third party annually, and a self-certification could be submitted even if no inspection took place. Another measure was that earlier small shopkeepers with less than 10 employees – like a tea shop or a kirana shop – had to submit annual returns. During his stint, Gauba exempted them, which was a huge relief. Today, shops and establishments with less than 10 employees have no requirement to maintain registers or submit annual returns. Hope Gauba will keep his reforms zeal and enthusiasm intact.