Former IAS officer Jawed Usmani on Wednesday took oath as new Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) of Uttar Pradesh at a function at Raj Bhawan. He emphasised on strengthening the RTI Act in Uttar Pradesh and stressed on accountability and transparency. Talking to reporters Usmani said that he felt honoured in getting this constitutional post. “RTI keeps a balance between the administration and people. It maintains transparency in the Government and makes officials accountable for their deeds. My main focus will be to reduce pending cases and impart information to the people without any bias and prejudice,” he said.
Usmani, a 1978-batch IAS officer, had taken voluntary retirement from service before taking over as the CIC. As per rules laid down for appointment of CIC, no one serving any post in the Government can take the charge. 58-year-old Usmani, who was due to retire in January 2016, had served as joint secretary of then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh between 2004 and 2007 and had worked in the capacity of senior advisor in World Bank and Indian Embassy in Nepal.
He also served as joint secretary to several Prime Ministers including H D Deve Gowda, I K Gujral and Atal Bihari Vajpayee from 1996 to 2001. He earlier served as secretary to then UP Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav in 2004 and was made Chief Secretary in 2012 after Akhilesh Yadav took charge as Chief Minister. However, after two-and-a-half years, Usmani was removed and after being put on wait list for some time, he was appointed as Chairman of Board of Revenue, where he was serving before taking VRS.