The appointment of 1986 batch Chhattisgarh cadre IAS officer Dr Alok Shukla as Principal Secretary, School Education Department on a contractual basis on his retirement could be the first instance of its kind in Chhattisgarh for an IAS officer to be re-appointed as PS after his retirement.However, there have been instances in the past where the rank of Principal Secretary which is considered a IAS domain had been held by non-IAS officers in the State. In the Raman Singh Government, Aman Kumar Singh , the officer who resigned from IRS joined as Secretary to the then Chief Minister Dr Raman Singh and was later promoted as Principal Secretary on contractual basis. The post of Principal Secretary, Parliamentary Affairs in Chhattisgarh had been held by non IAS officers as there is also a contractual provision in Chhattisgarh for the post of Principal Secretary, Parliamentary Affairs.Not just in Chhattisgarh, in Uttar Pradesh during the BSP rule, Shashank Shekhar Singh who was a former pilot was appointed on a Cabinet Secretary rank by the then Chief Minister Mayawati in early 2000.The Central Govt in 2019 also went for lateral entry of officers for the post of Joint Secretary which was again a IAS domain for very long. In the undivided Madhya Pradesh, Jawahar Srivastava, 1988 batch IAS officer who retired as Principal Secretary was reemployed by Madhya Pradesh Govenment as Principal Secretary on contractual basis.