Ladakh: The Ladakh Administration has assigned additional responsibilities to IAS officer Arava Gopi Krishna and Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Mandeep Mittal as part of an administrative order issued by the General Administration Department (GAD) on October 8, 2026.
According to Order No. 441-LA(GAD) of 2026, Gopi Krishna, a 2012-batch Indian Administrative Service officer of the AGMUT cadre, has been given the additional charge of Administrative Secretary, Youth Services and Sports Department, Union Territory of Ladakh. With this change, IAS officer Bhanu Prabha has been relieved of the responsibility.
In another assignment, Mandeep Mittal, a 2016-batch IFS officer of the AGMUT cadre who is currently serving as Divisional Forest Officer (DFO), Leh, has been given the additional charge of Special Secretary, Agriculture and Horticulture Department, UT of Ladakh. He will continue to discharge his existing duties alongside the additional responsibility.
The order has been issued in the interest of administration and takes effect immediately. Both arrangements will remain in force until further orders.
IAS Arava Gopi Krishna Gets Youth Services and Sports Department
Arava Gopi Krishna is a 2012-batch IAS officer belonging to the AGMUT cadre, which covers Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, Mizoram and Union Territories.
Under the latest order, he has been assigned the additional charge of Administrative Secretary, Youth Services and Sports Department, Ladakh. The assignment adds another departmental responsibility to his existing administrative duties.
The Youth Services and Sports Department is responsible for matters relating to youth development and sports administration within the Union Territory. Gopi Krishna’s additional charge places him in the department’s senior administrative leadership.
As part of the same arrangement, IAS officer Bhanu Prabha has been relieved of the responsibility. The order specifies the transfer of the additional charge but does not, in the information provided, indicate any other change to her posting.
IFS Mandeep Mittal Gets Additional Charge of Agriculture and Horticulture
Mandeep Mittal, a 2016-batch IFS officer of the AGMUT cadre, is currently serving as Divisional Forest Officer, Leh.
The Ladakh Administration has assigned him the additional charge of Special Secretary, Agriculture and Horticulture Department. Unlike the change involving the Youth Services and Sports Department, the order specifies that Mittal will retain his existing responsibilities as DFO, Leh, while handling the additional portfolio.
The assignment brings agriculture and horticulture administration alongside his existing forest service responsibilities. It is an additional-charge arrangement rather than a stated replacement in his current position.
Agriculture and horticulture are important administrative sectors in Ladakh, where local conditions shape farming practices and the cultivation of crops. The order, however, does not specify any separate policy initiative or change in departmental functioning associated with Mittal’s appointment.
Order Takes Immediate Effect
The General Administration Department issued the order on October 8, 2026, under Order No. 441-LA(GAD) of 2026.
The order states that the assignments have been made in the interest of administration. They take effect immediately and will continue until further orders.
The two changes concern different departments and officers: Gopi Krishna will take over the additional charge of Administrative Secretary, Youth Services and Sports Department, relieving Bhanu Prabha of that responsibility, while Mittal will assume the additional charge of Special Secretary, Agriculture and Horticulture Department, alongside his existing duties as DFO, Leh.
The order therefore reallocates departmental responsibilities within the Ladakh Administration without specifying any change to the officers’ substantive cadre or batch.
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