Haryana Cancels Pradeep Dahiya's Transfer, MCG Commissioner to Stay in Gurugram

GURUGRAM: The Haryana government has withdrawn the transfer of Municipal Corporation of Gurugram commissioner Pradeep Dahiya within 24 hours of moving him to Rohtak, leaving the senior officer in charge of the civic body during a week of severe monsoon disruption.

Dahiya, a 2013-batch IAS officer, had been appointed deputy commissioner of Rohtak in an order issued on Thursday. A revised order on Friday cancelled that move. The reversal means he will continue as MCG commissioner, a post he has held since May 6, 2025.

Posting chain revised

The earlier order had placed 2018-batch IAS officer Sachin Yadav, then Rohtak deputy commissioner, in charge of MCG. Under the revised arrangement, Yadav has instead been transferred to Ambala. The state also issued another round of postings involving 24 Haryana Civil Services officers.

Officials familiar with the exercise described Dahiya's original move as part of a routine administrative reshuffle that was reviewed soon after it was notified. The government order confirms the reversal, but no detailed public explanation for the change was available. Dahiya said he did not know why the decision had been reconsidered and would discharge the responsibility assigned to him.

Reversal comes during rain emergency

The timing gives the decision added significance. Gurugram has spent several days dealing with flooded roads, damaged drainage infrastructure, traffic closures, power interruptions and water entering public buildings. MCG teams are responsible for a substantial share of the emergency response, including dewatering, sanitation, road access and coordination with other agencies.

A change at the top of the corporation during such a response would have required a rapid handover of field priorities, contractor deployment and pending instructions. Retaining the incumbent avoids that immediate transition. It does not, however, alter the civic body's responsibility to explain why known hotspots flooded and to publish a time-bound plan for repeated failures.

Dahiya has previously served as deputy commissioner in Jhajjar, Kaithal, Nuh and Hisar. He has also worked at the Haryana Shahari Vikas Pradhikaran and in the Urban Estates Department. That administrative background now remains tied to the corporation's response at a particularly demanding point in the monsoon.

Focus shifts back to delivery

The transfer reversal is an administrative decision, not a performance assessment in itself. Residents will judge the corporation by whether pumps remain functional, drains are cleared, waste is removed after the rain and damaged roads are made safe. The continuity created by Friday's order should make responsibility easier to trace rather than diffuse it.

MCG also has to work alongside GMDA, NHAI, the Public Works Department, electricity agencies and the district administration. Gurugram's recurring problem is often less about the absence of agencies than the gaps between them. Clear ownership of each flooded road and drain will be essential once the immediate emergency eases.

For now, the position is unambiguous: Thursday's transfer to Rohtak no longer stands, and Dahiya remains MCG commissioner. The next meaningful update will come from the condition of the city on the ground and from any corrective programme the corporation puts into action after this week's rainfall.