Chhattisgarh’s Nari Shakti model: Women take centre stage in governance

Chhattisgarh is emerging as a striking example of women’s leadership in public administration, with the Vishnu Deo Sai Government steadily increasing the 
representation of women officers in key positions across the State.

The latest administrative reshuffle announced on Tuesday has further strengthened this trend. With the appointment of Jayashree Jain as Collector of Sakti district and Tanuja Salam as Collector of Mohla-Manpur-Ambagarh Chowki, Chhattisgarh now has 12 Women Collectors among its 33 districts, more than one-third of the State’s districts. 
The latest reshuffle also saw Tulika Prajapati, already serving as a Woman Collector, move to Kabirdham district.

The development assumes significance because the Collector is the administrative face of the Government at the district level, responsible for coordinating development programmes, revenue administration, law & order and delivery of public services.

The latest appointments build on a broader administrative shift initiated earlier this year. In May, the Vishnu Deo Sai Government had placed women officers in charge of 10 districts, including Bemetara, Kondagaon, Narayanpur, Surajpur, Balrampur-Ramanujganj, Mohla-Manpur-Ambagarh Chowki, Balod, Koriya, Manendragarh-Chirmiri-Bharatpur and Sarangarh-Bilaigarh.

The message from the State’s bureaucracy is equally significant at the secretariat level. Niharika Barik, a senior IAS officer, heads the Home and Jail Department as Principal Secretary, a position carrying responsibility for one of the State’s most critical administrative portfolios.

The latest reshuffle, which involved 22 IAS officers and an Indian Forest Service officer, has consequently acquired significance beyond a routine exercise in administrative postings. 

Six districts ie Kanker, Mungeli, Sakti, Kabirdham, Gariaband and Mohla-Manpur-Ambagarh Chowki received new Collectors, with Women Officers taking charge of Sakti, Kabirdham and Mohla-Manpur-Ambagarh Chowki. The posting of Women Officers to other important positions in the same order includes Roma Srivastava IAS as Chief Executive Officer, District Panchayat Sarguja; Akansha Shikha IAS as Director, Sports & Youth Welfare and  Leena Kosam IAS as Commissioner, Municipal Corporation Durg.
For the Vishnu Deo Sai Government, the growing presence of women in Senior Administrative positions is consistent with its emphasis on Nari Shakti and women-centric Governance. 

The State has also designated 2026 as ‘Mahtari Gaurav Varsh’, underlining the Government’s focus on women’s dignity, participation and empowerment.
What makes the Chhattisgarh experiment noteworthy is that women officers are not being confined to departments traditionally associated with women and social welfare. 
They are increasingly being entrusted with district administration, home affairs, revenue, urban development and other core governance responsibilities.

The significance goes beyond numbers. Having women in positions of authority can send a powerful message to young women across the State that leadership in public institutions is not restricted by gender. 

At the district level, where Government policies directly meet citizens, the visibility of women administrators can also create new role models for girls aspiring to careers in civil services and public leadership.

The latest postings therefore represent more than an administrative reshuffle. They signal an evolving governance philosophy in which women’s empowerment is increasingly being reflected not only in welfare schemes but also in the structure and functioning of the administration itself.

With 12 of its 33 districts now led by Women Collectors and a Senior Woman IAS Officer heading the Home Department, Chhattisgarh is placing itself among the States drawing national attention for its growing representation of women in the higher echelons of governance.For a State seeking to combine administrative reform with inclusive development, the rise of Nari Shakti in the bureaucracy could become an important part of its larger governance story.