Former Chief Secretary and Principal Advisor to the Maharashtra Chief Minister, Manoj Saunik assumed charge as the third Chairman of Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA) on Friday. He succeeded Ajoy Mehta who retired.

Saunik was administered the oath of office and secrecy by the Housing Minister Atul Save.

Saunik is a 1987 batch IAS officer. Since his retirement as Maharashtra's Chief Secretary in December 2023, he has been serving as the Principal Advisor to the Chief Minister. During his long and illustrious service, he has held several important positions, including Additional Chief Secretary of Finance and Public Works Department; Principal Secretary of Transport, Ports, and Textiles; Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Defence at the Centre; Private Secretary to the Union Minister of Power; District Collector of Nashik and Chief Executive Officer of Pune and Alibaug Zilla Parishads.

Earlier, Saunik felicitated the outgoing chairman of MahaRERA, Ajoy Mehta. During the occasion, a compilation of 173 landmark decisions taken by Mehta titled "RERA: A Perspective" was released by the incoming Chairman. This compilation has an important foreword by Mehta.

Reciprocating the gesture and honour, Mehta expressed his gratitude to the entire team at MahaRERA office for their active cooperation that allowed him to work steadfastly.