Sabeen Bansal, a popular IAS officer of the 2009 batch of the Uttarakhand cadre, is known for his direct engagement with the public, his tough decisions, and his exceptional work ethic. He currently serves as Secretary, Excise Department, and Secretary, Planning, in the Uttarakhand government.
He was born on August 23, 1984, in the state of Haryana. He received his early education from DAV Public College, Ambala, Haryana. He completed his mechanical engineering from NIT Kurukshetra University and his master’s degree in Risk and Resilience from the world-renowned University College London, London, UK. He passed the Civil Services Examination without any interruption in 2008, securing an All India Rank of 34.He also completed his IAS foundation and administrative training from the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, Mussoorie.
He has served as the District Magistrate of Almora, Nainital, and most recently, Dehradun in Uttarakhand, and has also held important positions as Additional Secretary in various state government departments. He has also been the project director of the disaster management project run in Uttarakhand with the cooperation of the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank.
Key Tasks
- Improving the Education Sector
During his tenure in Dehradun, he prioritized the safety of children and ordered the demolition and renovation of 79 dilapidated government school buildings. He also upgraded primary schools with modern furniture, whiteboards, digital screens, and mandatory outdoor activities. He also launched a special initiative to provide financial assistance of up to ₹100,000 to promising female students struggling with difficult circumstances.
- Women’s Safety and Social Welfare
To strengthen women’s safety, he established dedicated pick-up police squads in urban areas and launched a large-scale rescue and rehabilitation campaign to rescue children from beggary and reconnect them with mainstream education.
- Urban Infrastructure and Modernization
To address the parking problem in a city like Dehradun, he implemented a modern mechanical parking system and allocated a special budget for the installation of charging stations in the city’s main centers to promote environmentally friendly electric vehicles.
- Commendable reforms and surprise inspections
Upon seeing the systemic changes in the monitoring of cleanliness and garbage collection in the Municipal Corporation, he changed the working system that had been in place for 21 years and redefined its responsibility and gave a strict 45-day ultimatum to private companies for improvement. In Nainital, he himself visited the liquor shop as a common customer and suspended and punished the sellers who were over-charging on the spot.
- Disaster Management
While serving as Additional Secretary at the state level in Disaster Management, he successfully led a major disaster rehabilitation and risk reduction project funded by the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank in Uttarakhand.
Honors and Awards
- Lokratna Himalaya Samman: This honor was given for his exceptional public service as District Magistrate.
- Hon’ble State Governor Award: This honor was given by the Honorable Governor of Uttarakhand in recognition of his dedication to duty and efficient administrative service.
- Commonwealth Shared Scholarship 2021-22: All Bansal was selected as the only All India Service officer from India among applicants from over 100 countries.
- Commonwealth Scholarship Commission Nomination 2022