Chennai: The Tamil Nadu government has effected a major administrative reshuffle involving several senior Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers, appointing A Karthik as the new Home Secretary and bringing back Rajesh Lakhoni to head the state’s power distribution organisation.
The changes also include new assignments for K Manivasan, V Arun Roy, N Venkatesh, V Sivakrishnamurthy and R Vaithinathan. The reshuffle affects key departments dealing with home administration, land administration, electricity distribution, agriculture, finance and water supply.
Lakhoni’s return to the power sector comes at a time when Tamil Nadu has faced criticism over recent power outages. His earlier tenure at the helm of the state’s electricity organisations, from May 2021 to October 2024, makes his return a significant development in the latest round of administrative changes.
A Karthik Appointed Tamil Nadu Home Secretary
Senior IAS officer A Karthik has been appointed the new Home Secretary of Tamil Nadu, replacing K Manivasan, who has been transferred as Commissioner of Land Administration.
Karthik was previously serving as the Chairman and Managing Director of the Tamil Nadu Small Industries Development Corporation Limited (TANSIDCO). A 1996-batch IAS officer of the Tamil Nadu cadre, he has served in several important administrative positions across the state government during a career spanning nearly three decades.
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His appointment to the Home Department places him in charge of a key portfolio within the state administration. The department deals with matters relating to internal security, police administration and other areas of public order and governance.
Who Is A Karthik?
A Karthik is a 1996-batch IAS officer belonging to the Tamil Nadu cadre. A direct-recruit officer, he entered the civil services after clearing the UPSC Civil Services Examination.
He was born on July 7, 1974, and has academic qualifications in commerce and public administration. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce (B.Com.) degree and a Master of Public Administration (M.P.A.) degree. He is reported to know Tamil, English and Hindi and is placed at Level 15 of the IAS pay matrix.
Over his career, Karthik has held more than 19 administrative assignments spanning state-level departments and field administration.
His previous assignments include Principal Secretary of the Higher Education Department, Principal Secretary to the Governor of Tamil Nadu, and Secretary to the Government in the Backward Classes, Most Backward Classes and Minorities Welfare Department. He has also served in the Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development and Fisheries Department.
His earlier field assignments included positions as Assistant Collector, Additional Collector, Deputy Commissioner and District Collector across different administrative jurisdictions in Tamil Nadu.
Before his appointment as Home Secretary, Karthik was serving as the CMD of TANSIDCO, the state government undertaking responsible for promoting and supporting small-scale industries.
Rajesh Lakhoni Returns to Head Tamil Nadu’s Power-Sector Organisations
In another major appointment, senior IAS officer Rajesh Lakhoni has been named Chairman and Managing Director of the Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corporation Limited (TNPDCL), Chennai.
He will also function as chairman of the Tamil Nadu Power Generation Corporation, Tamil Nadu Transmission Corporation and Tamil Nadu Green Energy Corporation.
Lakhoni’s return to the state’s power sector is noteworthy in the context of recent electricity outages that have drawn criticism from members of the public and political parties. His previous experience leading Tamil Nadu’s electricity organisations is expected to be relevant to his new responsibilities.
Lakhoni had headed the state’s power-sector organisations from May 17, 2021, to October 2024. During that period, he served as CMD of Tamil Nadu Electricity Board Limited and Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation Limited (TANGEDCO), and as chairman of Tamil Nadu Transmission Corporation Limited (TANTRANSCO). He subsequently held additional charge of the Tamil Nadu Power Generation Corporation and Tamil Nadu Green Energy Corporation.
Before his latest appointment, Lakhoni was serving as Commissioner of Land Administration. That position will now be taken over by K Manivasan, who has been replaced as Home Secretary by A Karthik.
Who Is Rajesh Lakhoni?
Rajesh Lakhoni, also spelled Rajesh Lakhani in some sources, is a 1992-batch IAS officer of the Tamil Nadu cadre. He has held several significant assignments in state administration and on central deputation, with experience in power-sector management, urban development, election administration and district governance.
Born on May 26, 1969, Lakhoni studied Electronics and Communication Engineering at Government Engineering College, Raipur, now associated with the National Institute of Technology, Raipur. He later obtained an M.Tech. in Communication Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi. He also cleared the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) with a high rank before entering public service.
His career has included assignments as Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation of Chennai, Chief Electoral Officer of Tamil Nadu, Principal Secretary of the Housing and Urban Development Department, and head of the state’s electricity organisations.
As Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation of Chennai from December 2006 to July 2011, he was involved in urban administration and infrastructure management. He also served as District Collector of Kanyakumari and Theni between 2003 and 2006.
During his tenure as District Collector of Kanyakumari, Lakhoni was associated with administrative and rehabilitation work following the devastating Indian Ocean tsunami of December 2004.
From February 2016 to December 2018, he served as Chief Electoral Officer and Principal Secretary of Tamil Nadu, overseeing election-related administration and the implementation of Election Commission rules.
He later became Principal Secretary of the Housing and Urban Development Department, serving from August 2019 to November 2020, before moving to the leadership of the state’s power-sector organisations in May 2021.
Lakhoni subsequently went on central deputation. From February 2025 to July 2026, he served as Commissioner of the Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti in New Delhi under the Ministry of Education. During this period, he also held additional charge as Director General of the National Testing Agency (NTA), according to the supplied profile.
He returned to Tamil Nadu in July 2026 and was posted as Additional Chief Secretary and Commissioner of Land Administration before his latest transfer to TNPDCL and the other power-sector organisations.
His latest appointment brings him back to an area of administration in which he has previously held several senior leadership positions.
V Arun Roy Transferred to Finance Department
The reshuffle also affects V Arun Roy, who was serving as CMD of the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board/TNPDCL and chairman of the state’s other power-sector organisations.
Roy has been transferred and appointed Secretary, Finance (Expenditure), replacing N Venkatesh.
Venkatesh, in turn, has been appointed Secretary to the Agriculture Department, replacing N Subbaiyan.
The Agriculture Department had faced criticism over the absence of a full-time secretary following the transfer of P Shankar, who had previously been functioning as Agriculture Secretary. Venkatesh’s appointment fills that administrative position.
The movement of Roy to the Finance Department and Venkatesh to Agriculture forms part of the wider reallocation of senior officers across important state government portfolios.
K Manivasan Moves to Land Administration
K Manivasan, who was serving as Home Secretary, has been transferred and appointed Commissioner of Land Administration.
He succeeds Rajesh Lakhoni, who has been moved to head TNPDCL and the other power-sector organisations.
The transfer creates a chain of changes across three key assignments: Karthik moves from TANSIDCO to the Home Department, Manivasan moves from Home to Land Administration, and Lakhoni moves from Land Administration back to the power sector.
These changes place senior officers with experience in different areas of administration in new roles across the state government.
V Sivakrishnamurthy Appointed Theni Collector
The reshuffle also includes changes in Theni district administration and the Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage Board (TWAD Board).
V Sivakrishnamurthy, who was serving as Joint Managing Director of the TWAD Board, has been transferred and appointed Collector of Theni district.
He replaces R Vaithinathan, who has been transferred and posted as Joint Managing Director of the TWAD Board.
The changes involve a swap of responsibilities between the district administration and the state’s water-supply organisation, bringing Sivakrishnamurthy into the district collectorate and Vaithinathan into the TWAD Board’s senior management.
Key Takeaways from Tamil Nadu’s IAS Reshuffle
The latest transfers affect several major administrative portfolios. A Karthik takes over as Home Secretary, while K Manivasan moves to Land Administration and Rajesh Lakhoni returns to lead TNPDCL and three other power-sector organisations.
V Arun Roy moves to Finance (Expenditure), N Venkatesh becomes Agriculture Secretary, and V Sivakrishnamurthy takes over as Theni Collector. R Vaithinathan, meanwhile, moves to the TWAD Board as Joint Managing Director.
The changes bring new leadership to the Home and Agriculture departments, reassign responsibility for land administration, and return an experienced officer to Tamil Nadu’s power sector at a time when electricity supply has been the subject of public and political criticism.
