Smt Uma Mahadevan is a 1992 batch IAS officer of Karnataka cadre who is currently serving as the Additional Chief Secretary (Panchayat Raj) in the Department of Rural Development & Panchayat Raj, and in the Department of Skill Development, Entrepreneurship and Livelihood, Govt of Karnataka. She holds a postgraduate degree in English literature and has authored multiple articles/ publications on culture and development issues.  

She has served in multiple capacities at the centre and the state, prominent among them in the Departments of Women & Child Development, Planning, Agriculture, Education, and Health & Family Welfare. She has also served in the Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India, and Tata Institute of Fundamental Research.

She has been a member of the ECCE Taskforce set up by the Ministry of Women & Child Development. As Additional Chief Secretary (Panchayat Raj), she guides the three-tier panchayat raj institutions towards the holistic development of rural areas in Karnataka state. A person known to be an expert in her sector with a deep passion for inclusive change.