Saturday, June 24 2006 13:00 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar transferred 28 senior bureaucrats, including 13 district magistrates, in a major midnight administrative reshuffle.

The reshuffle of Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers late Friday - on the eve of Nitish Kumar's completion of seven months in office - is seen as the government's move to make visible the much-talked-about 'sushashan' (good governance) and speed up development.

Official sources in the personnel department said a few of district magistrates transferred Friday were shifted out due to their poor performance.

The government transferred Vaishali district magistrate Sanjeev Hans, who had received death threats by criminals two days ago. Two attempts had been made on his life in the last four months. Hans has been transferred to Begusarai.

A dozen commissioner rank officials have been transferred to give a fresh opportunity to a few favourite bureaucrats of Nitish Kumar to prove their worth, officials said.

In the last seven months, the Nitish Kumar government has undertaken nearly half a dozen administrative reshuffles, including of police, aimed to put the administration on the right track and improve the poor law and order. However, nothing has changed in the state if the rising crime graph of murder, kidnapping, extortion and loot - is any indication.

Over a dozen people kidnapped in the last three months remain untraced with police failing to make any breakthrough. Hardly a day passes without local Hindi dailies reporting at least half a dozen killings across the state.