Himanshu Sharma, IAS Bihar: Profile, Bio, Age, Wife and Family

Early Life, Education & Entry into Civil Service

Date of Birth & Cadre: Himanshu Sharma was born on 5 January 1983. (The secretariat)
Education: He completed his B.Sc (Science) and B.Ed from Kurukshetra, and later pursued M.Sc in Biotechnology from a biotechnology institute in Varanasi. (The secretariat)
IAS Batch & Allotment: He belongs to the 2011 batch of the IAS, allotted to the Bihar cadre. His identification number is 01BH110D05. (The secretariat)

His academic background in science and biotechnology is somewhat less common among administrative officers (many of whom come from humanities/commerce/law backgrounds), which gives him a technical grounding in policy design in sectors like rural development, agriculture, environment, etc.

Career Trajectory & Key Postings

Below is a milestone-based overview of his administrative journey:

Early Postings & District Administration

As with most civil servants, Himanshu Sharma’s early career involved district-level and subordinate administrative roles. For instance, in the past, he served as District Magistrate (DM), Kishanganj, after being transferred from Araria DM. (The Times of India)
He also held the position of Municipal Commissioner, Patna Division (or for the Patna municipal area) at some point. (Patna Municipal Corporation)
He served as Municipal Commissioner during 20 Feb 2020 – 22 Feb 2021, and again from 23 Mar 2021 to 26 Nov 2021, as per official municipal records. (Patna Municipal Corporation)

These roles would have given him experience in urban governance, public utilities, urban infrastructure, sanitation, and interface with municipal corporations.

Central Deputation & Role as Private Secretary / Principal Secretary

In October 2021, the Government of India (DoPT) appointed Himanshu Sharma for central deputation as Private Secretary / Principal Secretary to MoS Jitendra Singh (in his portfolios of Science & Technology and PMO). The notification said the tenure would be for five years or co-terminus with the Minister. (Elets eGov)
At the time of that appointment, he was told to be relieved from his state posting to take up his new central assignment. (ETGovernment.com)
That resultantly meant he moved from state-level municipal/urban roles to central-level policy interface, a common pathway for promising officers.

Return to Bihar & Leadership of “JEEVIKA” (Rural Livelihoods Mission)

In June 2024, after completing or exiting central deputation, Himanshu Sharma was posted back in Bihar and made Chief Executive Officer (CEO) / State Mission Director of JEEVIKA (the Bihar Rural Livelihoods Promotion Society), the flagship rural livelihoods / poverty alleviation mission of Bihar. (Uniindia)
The rural development department of Bihar lists him as CEO, JEEVIKA, IAS in its key contacts. (Bihar Government)
The JEEVIKA “staff list” also names him as CEO cum State Mission Director. (BRLPS)
Under his leadership, his role is to supervise implementation of self-help group programs, financial inclusion of women, micro-credit, livelihood schemes, capacity building, and scaling of JEEVIKA across all blocks of Bihar.

Recent Focus & Initiatives

Under his stewardship at JEEVIKA, Himanshu Sharma has reportedly:

Scaled operations: He is credited with overseeing expansion in reach of Self-Help Groups (SHGs), community investment funds, and credit flows in Bihar’s rural areas. (YouTube)
Jeevika Credit Cooperative initiative: He has promoted formation of a cooperative (sometimes termed “their own bank”) to serve rural women with simplified credit access, reducing dependency on formal banking red tape. (Patna Press)
Public outreach & recognition: At an event honoring 60 rural women, he highlighted how women’s participation drove success in rural development interventions. (The Times of India)
Media & recruitment engagement: He has made statements in public forums and videos about opportunities under Jeevika (e.g. youth recruitment, mission expansion). (YouTube)

Thus, his current public identity is deeply linked with JEEVIKA and rural livelihoods in Bihar.

Key Achievements & Strengths

Under his leadership, JEEVIKA has grown into one of Bihar’s most ambitious rural development programmes, with millions of women across blocks participating in SHGs and federations. (Uniindia)
The credit flows and repayment discipline in JEEVIKA’s microfinance architecture have often been cited as high—reportedly ~99.5% repayment in some cases (as per media narratives).
He is seen as a bridge between grassroots implementation and bureaucratic innovation, pushing for institutional mechanisms (like the cooperative) to sustain self-help models rather than ad hoc scheme-based approaches. (Patna Press)
His stint in the central government (as private secretary) would have provided exposure to national-level policy, cross-ministerial coordination, and the workings of higher bureaucracy.

Controversies, Critiques & Public Scrutiny

In publicly available sources, there are very few direct controversies or scandals strongly linked to Himanshu Sharma. However, some notes or edges of scrutiny or potential issues can be discussed:

Lack of strong controversies in media
- No well-documented corruption, vigilance, or misgovernance allegations against Himanshu Sharma appear in mainstream national media records (as of now).
- That said, the absence of controversies does not necessarily imply perfection—public servants often come under subtle criticism locally, which may not reach national reportage.
Critique of scheme-based approaches & sustainability
- Observers of rural development argue that SHG-based credit and livelihood models often struggle when subsidies, seed funding or external grants recede. Some critics might ask whether JEEVIKA’s model under him is sufficiently sustainable, or whether the deep reliance on state funding is vulnerable to political shifts.
Operational challenges & scale pressures
- Scaling a mission to all panchayats and thousands of SHGs inevitably brings issues of staff accountability, audit, leakage, local politics, and monitoring difficulties. Those are standard pressures faced by mission heads (and thus apply to his role).
- In such contexts, bureaucrats are sometimes accused of favoring certain districts or neglecting remote ones—though no specific credible claim against him is reported in the sources I found.
Potential judicial / legal mention
- In one social media snippet, a “HIMANSHU SHARMA vs State of Madhya Pradesh CRIMINAL APPEAL” is mentioned (in The Edulaw feed) — but it is not clear this refers to this IAS officer; could be a namesake. (Facebook)
- Without confirmation, it would be speculative to claim a legal case.
Transfer dynamics & political pressure
- Like many IAS officers, he has been part of bureaucratic transfers and reshuffles, which sometimes happen amid political turbulence, though that is standard for the service and not a personal scandal per se. For instance, in January 2024, a large reshuffle of 23 IAS officers in Bihar took place. (The Times of India)

At this stage, his public profile is more about execution and scale of rural development rather than being defined by controversy.

Strengths, Challenges & Role in Bihar’s Development

Strengths & Leadership Style

Domain specialization: His background in science + his long exposure to rural/development administration positions him well to lead technically informed rural schemes.
Mission scaling mindset: His focus on turning JEEVIKA from niche to universal suggests ambition and systems thinking.
Innovative financial architecture: The push for a credit cooperative and trust-based micro-credit with minimal paperwork reflects an effort to reduce bureaucratic friction and empower women locally.
Bridge-builder: Having worked both in state-level field administration and central policy roles, he is likely comfortable operating across verticals and mediating between government layers.

Challenges & Risks

Sustainability & financing: As the mission scales, ensuring long-term funding, avoiding over-dependence on subsidies, and making SHGs self-reliant is a perennial challenge.
Accountability & monitoring: Ensuring the quality of implementation across thousands of village units, detecting leakages, and enforcing safeguards is difficult.
Political / bureaucratic pressures: In states like Bihar, bureaucrats often face pressure from local politicians, caste dynamics, and vested interests. Steering the mission impartially while under such pressures is a test.
Staff capacity & turnover: Mission success often hinges on field-level staff, and continuity, training, and retention can be bottlenecks.

Despite these, his tenure so far suggests he has maintained a relatively clean image and a performance orientation.

Top Interesting Facts About Himanshu Sharma, IAS

Technical academic background – Unlike many civil servants, he has an MSc in Biotechnology, giving him a grounded perspective in science & tech domains.
Dual experience – He has held roles in both urban (Municipal Commissioner, Patna) and rural (JEEVIKA) governance.
Central deputation exposure – His stint as Private Secretary / Principal Secretary to a Union Minister gave him exposure to national-level policymaking.
Mission-level leadership – Leading JEEVIKA is significant because it is one of Bihar’s largest social sector programmes, touching millions of rural women.
Innovative credit cooperative approach – Under his guidance, the formation of a Jeevika cooperative is a novel attempt to institutionalize financial inclusion for women in rural Bihar.
Name identity caution – Given the commonality of his name, occasionally other individuals named “Himanshu Sharma” appear in legal or social media references; one should verify context when attributing news or legal cases.
Clean public profile – As of now, no major corruption or scandal has been reliably attributed to him publicly, which is relatively notable for a high-profile IAS in a large and politically sensitive state like Bihar.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Q1: Is Himanshu Sharma from Bihar originally?
A1: Public sources do not clearly state his native place or family origin. They focus on his career, education, and postings.

Q2: What is JEEVIKA and why is his role important?
A2: JEEVIKA (Bihar Rural Livelihoods Promotion Society) is Bihar’s flagship mission to empower rural women through SHGs, micro-credit, capacity-building, and livelihood projects. As CEO / State Mission Director, he directs strategy, funding, implementation oversight, and reforms.

Q3: Has Himanshu Sharma been involved in corruption or court cases?
A3: Based on publicly accessible media records up to 2025, there is no credible or substantiated corruption case or adverse judicial verdict against him. Some social media mentions (e.g. “HIMANSHU SHARMA vs State of Madhya Pradesh”) exist but lack confirmation as referring to this IAS officer. (Facebook)

Q4: What was his role in central government?
A4: He was appointed as Private Secretary / Principal Secretary to MoS Jitendra Singh (Science & Technology, PMO portfolios) during his central deputation. (Elets eGov)

Q5: What are his recent priorities at JEEVIKA?
A5: Key priorities include expanding SHG coverage, deepening financial inclusion (via the cooperative model), enabling youth recruitment under mission, and reinforcing women’s economic empowerment in rural Bihar.

Q6: What challenges does he face in his role?
A6: Challenges include ensuring financial sustainability, avoiding leakage, maintaining accountability at scale, dealing with political/administrative pressures, and managing staff across remote geographies.

Q7: How is his public image?
A7: His public image is currently positive and performance-oriented. He is often presented as a mission-driven bureaucrat rather than a controversial one, with media attention centered on development outcomes.

Q8: How long will he remain CEO of JEEVIKA / in this mission role?
A8: The tenure of such mission heads depends on state government decisions, administrative reshuffles, or career progression. There is no fixed guaranteed term published.

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