Anu Garg, a 1991-batch IAS officer, was appointed Chief Secretary of Odisha with effect from 1 January 2026. The appointment is historically important because she became the first woman to hold the Chief Secretary post in Odisha's history. For exam preparation, the update should be read as a governance and administration current-affairs fact linked to senior civil-service leadership and gender representation.

The most recall-worthy details are the person, post, state and effective date: Anu Garg, Chief Secretary of Odisha, from 1 January 2026. She succeeded Manoj Ahuja, who retired on 31 December 2025. The appointment notification was issued by Odisha's General Administration and Public Grievance Department. A prelims-style question may therefore test the name-post match, the state, the effective date, the predecessor, or the department that issued the notification.

For RAS and UPSC-style preparation, treat this as an appointment-based administration update in which the name, post, state, effective date and historic significance can be asked directly. It is useful to connect the fact with administrative leadership and women's representation in senior civil services. Its value lies in precise factual recall and in its governance angle: a woman officer reaching a senior administrative post in a state. In mains-oriented notes, the same fact can be used carefully as an example of women's representation in senior civil services. The factual boundary should remain clear: the core point is the appointment of Anu Garg as Odisha's first woman Chief Secretary, effective 1 January 2026.