ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Saturday transferred Nargis Sethi, his principal secretary, to the Cabinet Division and appointed Establishment Secretary Khushnud Akhtar Lashari in her place, sources told Dawn.

Ms Sethi has replaced Cabinet Secretary Abdul Rauf, who has been made establishment secretary in place of Mr Lashari. Mr Rauf has also been given the additional charge of the information technology ministry.

Ms Sethi has been assigned the additional charge of the health ministry, which was being looked after by Mr Lashari.

The post of IT secretary had been vacant since the appointment of Najibullah Malik as member of the Federal Public Service Commission last month.

A senior bureaucrat told Dawn that Mr Gilani had opted for the move after evaluating Mr Lashari’s performance and weighing his crucial decisions that had helped the government present its stance during the hearing of some important cases in the Supreme Court.

Mr Lashari, he added, had also efficiently coordinated with the provinces on health-related issues during the last year’s floods.

The official said Ms Sethi was given the additional charge of health ministry because the prime minister believed that after the implementation of devolution plan under the 18th Amendment, most of the departments of the ministry would ultimately go under the control of the cabinet division.

He dispelled an impression that some mistrust had arisen between the prime minister and Ms Sethi. “Ms Sethi herself expressed her desire to join some other ministry after serving as the PM’s principal secretary for a very long period.”—Imran Ali Teepu