Bengaluru, 16 May

State government has appointed Prasanna H, IAS, as Executive Director of Karnataka Examination Authority (KEA), replacing Ramya S, IAS, on Thursday.

This comes after allegations surfaced on 12 May that KEA had included 50 questions in Karnataka Common Entrance Test that were out of syllabus. Candidates had then filed a complaint at Malleswaram police station against KEA, which was headed by Ramya. In February 2024, High Court penalised the authority for two separate incidents. KEA was fined Rs 1 lakh and Rs 5 lakh, in two instances, for allocating medical seats to candidates who were ineligible.

Prior to his current appointment, Prasanna served as Director of Department of Technical Education in 2023, where he played a crucial role in shaping policies and initiatives related to technical education in the State. Before that, he served as Zilla Panchayat CEO in Udupi in 2022, overseeing the administration and development activities at the district level.

In 2021, Prasanna served as Deputy Resident Commissioner at Karnataka Bhavan, New Delhi, where he represented State government and facilitated coordination between State departments and Central agencies. He also worked as an Assistant Commissioner at Vijayapura. —Salar News