Gujarat Cadre IAS Rameshwar Prasad Gupta sacked as CMD, SECI; But why?

The ACC has terminated the services of Rameshwar Prasad Gupta, retired IAS, from the post of CMD of Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) with immediate effect. Read all details in this exclusive report:

New Delhi: Gujarat Cadre 1987 batch retired IAS Rameshwar Prasad Gupta has been sacked from the post of CMD, Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) just before one month of his tenure. He was appointed as CMD in June 2023 and his tenure was to end next month.

Higher power circles are abuzz as to why he has been sacked? Did he make any blunder? What was it? Power corridors are curious to know as he is a Gujarat cadre bureaucrat which is a dominating cadre at present in the central bureaucracy.

The government sources are not ready to officially comment on it. Rameshwar Prasad Gupta too is maintaining stone silence on the matter.

However, some hidden sources reveal that during Gupta's tenure, SECI had barred India's Reliance Power from participating in competitive tenders for renewable energy projects. It withdrew the order a month later in December after a court directive. SECI also came under question last year for a solar deal involving SECI and Adani group, which was signed before Gupta became Chairman.

Before joining SECI, Gupta was serving as Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India.

SECI comes under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy and it is an important Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) involved in implementing renewable energy projects across the country.

The termination order was issued late night by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT).