Ashok Barnwal IAS appointed officiating Chief Secretary – Madhya Pradesh
Shri Ashok Barnwal IAS (Madhya Pradesh 1991 ) has been appointed officiating Chief Secretary of Madhya Pradesh.
IAS Ashok Barnwal – A Veteran Administrator with Extensive Experience in Health, Forests, Agriculture and Public Policy
Shri Ashok Barnwal IAS has built an extensive administrative career spanning more than three decades, with wide-ranging experience across public health, medical education, forests, environment, agriculture, horticulture, food security, consumer protection, finance, education, rural development and district administration. An officer with a technical background in Mining Engineering, he has served in several important assignments in the Government of Madhya Pradesh as well as at the Centre.
Shri Barnwal holds a graduate degree in Mining Engineering, securing First Division. His technical education has been complemented by a long and varied administrative career that has taken him from grassroots district administration to senior positions at the level of Additional Chief Secretary. Over the years, he has handled responsibilities across sectors that are central to public welfare, economic development and natural resource management.
He is presently serving as Additional Chief Secretary in the Department of Public Health and Medical Education, Madhya Pradesh, a responsibility he has held since February 2026. The assignment places him in charge of a critical sector involving public health and medical education, areas that require sustained administrative coordination, institutional management and focus on public service delivery.
Alongside this responsibility, Shri Barnwal has also been serving as Additional Chief Secretary in the Forest Department of Madhya Pradesh since July 2024. His administrative responsibilities have included the environment and forests sector, an area of considerable importance in a state with significant forest resources and diverse ecological landscapes.
He has also held the position of Additional Chief Secretary in the Backward Classes & Minority Welfare and Nomadic & Semi-Nomadic Tribes sector since October 2022. The assignment has involved responsibilities relating to social justice and empowerment and reflects his experience in the administration of welfare-oriented programmes.
Since October 2022, Shri Barnwal has also served as Additional Chief Secretary in the Agriculture Department, Government of Madhya Pradesh. His responsibilities in the agriculture sector have given him exposure to one of the most important areas of the state’s economy and rural livelihood structure.
His long association with the agriculture and food sectors began earlier in his career. From November 2015 to October 2022, he served as Principal Secretary in the Horticulture Department and was also associated with the Food Security Mission. He also served as Principal Secretary in the Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer Protection Department from January 2014. These assignments provided him with extensive experience in food administration, food security, horticulture and consumer protection.
Before becoming Principal Secretary, he served as Secretary in the Food Supplies & Consumer Welfare Department. He also served as Managing Director of the State Cooperative Marketing Federation, popularly known as Markfed, in Madhya Pradesh. The assignment provided exposure to agricultural marketing and cooperative institutions, linking his administrative experience with the needs of the agricultural economy.
Shri Barnwal has also held important responsibilities in the education sector. He served as Commissioner and Secretary of the State Education Mission and later as Commissioner of Public Instructions. These assignments provided him with experience in education administration and the implementation of public education programmes.
His career has also included significant exposure to the Government of India. He served as Private Secretary in the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways and earlier as Private Secretary in the Ministry of Commerce & Industry. He also served as Director in the Commerce & Industry sector at the Centre. These assignments gave him an understanding of Union Government functioning and national-level policy administration.
Earlier, he served as Secretary in the Finance Department of Madhya Pradesh, handling Institutional Finance, and as Director of Institutional Finance. His experience in finance administration added another important dimension to his career.
Shri Barnwal also held key assignments in the health and general administration sectors. He served as Additional Secretary in the Health & Family Welfare Department and as Additional Secretary in the Chief Minister’s Secretariat. He also served as Mission Coordinator of the Rajeev Gandhi Watershed Mission, gaining exposure to rural development-related initiatives.
His field experience forms a significant part of his administrative career. Shri Barnwal served as District Collector in Shahdol, Dewas and Guna. These assignments provided him with extensive experience in district administration, revenue management, development coordination and the implementation of government programmes at the grassroots level.
Earlier, he served as Additional Collector and Project Coordinator in rural development. He underwent training before taking up regular administrative responsibilities.
In addition to his regular assignments, Shri Barnwal has held several important additional charges. He served as Environment Commissioner and Director General of the Environmental Planning and Coordination Organisation, Madhya Pradesh, and also held the additional charge of Additional Chief Secretary, Environment Department. He also held the additional charge of Additional Chief Secretary, Cooperation Department.
His professional development has included mid-career and in-service training. In 2007, he participated in the Phase IV Programme of Mandatory Mid Career Training for IAS Officers. He also attended junior-level training at the Dr. Raghunanadan Singh Tolia Uttarakhand Academy of Administration, Nainital. In 2012-13, he participated in a programme on e-Governance Initiatives in Administration at the Administrative Training Institute, Mysore.
Shri Ashok Barnwal’s career reflects considerable administrative versatility. His assignments have covered public health, medical education, forests, environment, agriculture, horticulture, food security, consumer protection, education, finance, commerce, cooperation and rural development. This wide experience has allowed him to work across both welfare-oriented and economic sectors of governance.
His field postings as District Collector provided a strong foundation in grassroots administration, while his later responsibilities at the level of Principal Secretary and Additional Chief Secretary brought extensive exposure to policy formulation, departmental coordination and institutional governance.
With his technical background in Mining Engineering and more than three decades of administrative experience, Shri Barnwal has developed a broad understanding of governance across multiple sectors. His career reflects a steady progression from district-level administration to senior leadership in some of the most important departments of the state government.
His present responsibilities in public health and medical education, alongside his experience in forests, agriculture and social welfare, place him at the intersection of several key areas of public administration. The breadth of his experience continues to be a defining feature of his long administrative career, marked by service across diverse sectors and levels of governance.
