R Vimala named new Collector of Nagpur distt

 

Maharashtra Government, on Friday, transferred seven Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers including Ravindra Thakare, District Collector, Nagpur. Thakare will be replaced by R Vimala, an IAS officer of 2009 batch. She is the second woman to have been appointed Collector of Nagpur after Malini Shankar.

Though the Government announced his replacement, it did not announce new posting of Thakare. Ravindra Thakare had taken over as District Collector of Nagpur in 2019 a month ahead of Legislative Assembly elections. Then, he faced the challenge of smooth conduct of elections. Later on, in the early 2020, he faced another challenge as COVID-19 pandemic hit the district. He met both the challenges well and often devoted more than official hours to the duty. When Kamptee emerged as the hotspot of COVID-19 in the district, he frequented the place and interacted with people to ensure proper implementation of COVID-19 protocols.

R Vimala will take charge of the office of District Collector of Nagpur on Saturday. Born into a Tamil-origin family and brought up in Jalgaon district of Maharashtra, R Vimala excelled in academics and did her M.Phil.

in History. In 1992, the UGC scholar started her career as a lecturer at the Department of History, University of Pune. R Vimala dreamed to be an IAS officer. As she could not get through the final stage of UPSC examination, she opted for Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC). However, she had studied Marathi only till Std VII. With grit and determination, and support from her family, she learned Marathi grammar and composition in just three months. She got IAS cadre in 2009 She has served in various capacities in her over 27 years of Government service so far -- Joint Managing Director of Maharashtra Small Scale Industries Development Corporation, Deputy Commissioner (Entertainment Duty), Chief Executive Officer of Maharashtra State Rural Livelihoods Mission etc.

R Vimala is well-versed in Hindi, English, Marathi, and Tamil. Also, she is a poet some of whose Hindi poems have been composed into music albums.

The other officers transferred by the Government on Friday include Jalaj Sharma, Additional Municipal Commissioner, Nagpur. The IAS officer of 2014 batch has been shifted to Dhule as District Collector. Manisha Khatri, Additional Commissioner, Tribal Development, Nagpur, and IAS officer of 2014 batch has been transferred to Nandurbar as Collector.

V B Patil, an IAS officer of 2000 batch and Secretary of Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Protection Department, Mantralaya, Mumbai has been posted as Divisional Commissioner, Konkan Division, Mumbai. Vijay Waghmare, IAS officer of 2004 batch and Joint Managing Director of Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation, Mumbai, will replace Patil in Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Protection Department. Laxminarayan Mishra, IAS officer of 2012 batch and Collector of Ratnagiri has been posted as Chairman and Managing Director, Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited, Pune. Dr Rajendra Bharud, IAS officer of 2013 batch and Collector of Nandurbar has been posted as Commissioner, Tribal Research and Training Institute, Pune.