The Tamil Nadu government has appointed senior Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer A. Udhayan as the new Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Head of Forest Force), the highest post in the State Forest Department.

Mr. Udhayan, a 1991-batch IFS officer of the Tamil Nadu cadre, is currently the Director of the Advanced Institute for Wildlife Conservation (AIWC), Vandalur, a position he has held since June 14, 2022. Before taking charge at the institute, he served as Chairman of the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) from October 2021 to June 2022.

According to a government order issued by the Environment, Climate Change and Forests Department on July 22, he will assume charge as the Head of Forest Force from the forenoon of August 1, succeeding Srinivas R. Reddy, who is due to retire on July 31.

Mr. Udhayan holds an M.Sc. in Environmental Sciences from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, a postgraduate diploma in Wildlife Management from the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, and a postgraduate programme in Public Policy and Management from the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore.

Over his three-decade career, he has served in several positions in the Tamil Nadu Forest Department, specialising in wildlife and biodiversity conservation. He has also served as Principal of the Eastern Forest Rangers College, Kurseong, on deputation, Deputy Director of the Forest Survey of India, Scientist at the Wildlife Institute of India, and Specialist at the SAARC Forestry Centre in Thimphu, Bhutan.

Published - July 23, 2026 12:48 pm IST