RAIPUR: Chhattisgarh has appointed Vkas Sheel, a 1994-batch IAS as its 13th chief secretary on Thursday. He will take over Amitabh Jain who is currently serving the state Chief Secretary and is retiring on September 30, 2025, as the General Administration Department of Chhattisgarh govt issued an order to this effect on Thursday. This order is addressed to the Governor of Chhattisgarh.Sheel is currently on central deputation and serving as an advisor to the Executive Director at the Asian Development Bank (ADB). He is likely to be relieved from his current position shortly.Born on 10 June 1969, Sheel originally hails from Uttar Pradesh and joined the IAS on September 4, 1994.Sheel began his career in erstwhile Madhya Pradesh cadre before opting for the newly formed Chhattisgarh cadre in 2000.He served as the Collector of Raipur and Bilaspur districts and also held the position of Secretary in several state departments.Since 2018, he has been on central deputation, holding significant posts such as Additional Secretary in the Department of Health and Family Welfare, and Additional Secretary and Mission Director of the Jal Jeevan Mission in the Ministry of Jal Shakti.Sheel also pursued an advanced course in public administration and health service management from Syracuse University in the USA. He was formally relieved from his role at the ADB, where he was on a three-year term.Chief Secretary Amitabh Jain, who was scheduled to retire on June 30, 2025 had received a last-minute three-month extension following a directive from Delhi.