Former Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer from Kerala CV Ananda Bose was on Thursday, November 17 appointed as the new Governor of West Bengal. According to a communique from the Rashtrapati Bhavan, his appointment will be effective from the date he assumes charge. "I will function according to the Constitution and am thankful to the Prime Minister for this appointment. Will work together with the elected government and the opposition and the 'Lakshmanrekha' for functioning will be there. My official life as a bank employee began in Bengal, so it's a familiar place," Bose said.
Seventy-one-year-old Bose retired from service at the rank of Chief Secretary and Secretary at the Union government, and has also worked as a University Vice Chancellor, Additional Chief Secretary and District Collector. He also headed the Supreme Court committee on the treasures of the Sree Padmanabha Swamy Temple One of his key assignments was when he was Secretary to former Kerala Chief Minister K Karunakaran. Bose is also remembered for the Nirmithi Kendra (Building Centre) founded by him as District Collector of Kollam in 1985, to provide cost effective and environment friendly houses to people.
Incidentally this emerged into a national network and became part of the national housing policy. This initiative in affordable housing is seen as a trigger for the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. Bose had submitted the proposal in this regard to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 4, 2014. Of late, Bose is believed to have had direct communication with the national leadership of the BJP, with his opinion sought on various issues in Kerala. It was Manipur governor La Ganesan who held the additional charge of West Bengal up until now after Jagdeep Dhankar became the Vice President.