​Uttarakhand govt removes power transmission company MD following high court order

Dehradun, Feb 27 (PTI) The Uttarakhand government has removed Prakash Chandra Dhyani from the post of Managing Director of the Power Transmission Corporation of Uttarakhand Limited.

This comes after the Uttarakhand High Court directed the Principal Secretary (Energy), R Meenakshi Sundaram, to appear before it in a contempt case.

An order issued by Sundaram stated that Dhyani, who serves as Director (Human Resources) at the Power Transmission Corporation of Uttarakhand Limited (PTCUL), was given additional charge as Managing Director on September 10, 2022. This was a temporary arrangement pending permanent appointment or further government orders.

Following the latest directive, Dhyani has been relieved of the additional charge. Meherban Singh Bisht, Additional Secretary in the Energy Department, has been assigned the additional responsibility of PTCUL Managing Director.

Earlier in the day, a single bench of Justice Alok Kumar Verma directed Sundaram to appear via video conference on March 19 to explain the non-compliance of a previous court order. The directions came during a hearing on a contempt petition filed by Dehradun-based RTI activist Anil Baluni and others.

The petition stated that on February 18, 2026, the high court had quashed Dhyani's appointment. The court had directed the state government to reconsider the appointment in accordance with the Uttarakhand Rules for Selection and Appointment of Managing Directors and Directors, 2021.

The court had earlier ruled that Dhyani's appointment violated Rule 9-A of the 2021 regulations, which mandates an engineering degree for the post. Dhyani allegedly does not have this qualification.

The court had noted that while the government was free to reconsider the matter, any new decision must strictly comply with the 2021 rules. It further observed that if any exemptions were granted, the government must clearly explain how the alternative qualifications were being treated as equivalent to the required standards. PTI DPT AKY