The Punjab government is staring at a deepening administrative crisis in 2026, with a significant exodus of experienced bureaucrats set to strain the state's governance machinery. As many as 14 Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers of the Punjab cadre are scheduled to retire this year, exacerbating an already critical shortage of officers.
A Wave of Retirements Throughout the Year
The retirements are spread across the calendar, beginning this month. 1996-batch officer A.K. Sinha, who has been without a formal posting since being removed as Secretary of Power and Chairman of PSPCL and PSTCL on November 1, is set to retire on January 31. He may retire without being assigned to any department. Also retiring this month is 2005-batch IAS Dilraj Singh Sandhawalia, the current Secretary of Health.
February will see the departure of two more officers. Arvind Pal Singh Sandhu (2009 batch), the State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities, and Arun Sekhri (2004 batch), the Commissioner for Ferozepur and Jalandhar divisions, will both superannuate on February 28.
The administrative drain continues in March with the retirement of three key officials. Anurag Agarwal (1990 batch), who was once in the race for Chief Secretary before proceeding on central deputation, retires on March 31. He is joined by J.M. Balamuruhan (1994 batch), Additional Chief Secretary for Defense Services, and Bhupinder Singh (2012 batch), Special Secretary for Power.
Subsequent months will see more departures: Vimal Setia (2010 batch) in April; Gurpreet Sapra (2005 batch), Secretary of Personnel, and Mohinder Pal (2008 batch) in June; Sarvjit Singh (1992 batch), Special Chief Secretary for Sports and Youth Affairs, in July; V.K. Meena (1997 batch) in August; Manvesh Singh Sidhu (2004 batch), Secretary of Labour, in October; and Seema Jain (1991 batch), who is on central deputation, in December.
Compounding an Existing Shortage and Deputation Requests
This wave of retirements hits a bureaucracy that is already understaffed. According to the latest gradation list, Punjab has 191 IAS officers against a sanctioned cadre strength of over 200. The situation is further complicated by a trend of officers seeking central deputation.
At least four officers—Tejveer Singh (1994 batch), Dileep Kumar (1995 batch), Sibin C (2005 batch), and Varun Roojam (2004 batch)—have already obtained No Objection Certificates (NOCs) from the state government and await postings from the Centre. Shruti Singh (2004 batch) has already joined the Centre as Joint Secretary in the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.
Conversely, the state government has denied NOCs to several officers, including Nilkanth S Avhad (1999 batch), Alakhnanda Dayal (2000 batch), and Vijay N Zade (2002 batch), asking them to remain in Punjab.
Officers Awaiting Postings Add to the Crisis
Adding another layer to the administrative logjam is the plight of several IAS officers who have been without formal assignments for months after being transferred from their previous roles.
Gurkirat Kirpal Singh (2001 batch) has been without work for over eight months since being removed as Home Secretary on March 24. He was instructed to report to the Personnel Department but has received no new posting. Similarly, Puneet Goyal (2010 batch) was removed as Director of Food on February 25 and remains without a new assignment. Kanwalpreet Brar, another officer removed from the Punjab Warehousing Corporation in February, also continues to await a posting.
This combination of retirements, central deputations, and a backlog of unposted officers presents a formidable challenge for the Punjab administration, threatening to impact policy implementation and day-to-day governance across departments.
