Pratima S. Verma, who assumed charge as the district magistrate (DM) of Patna on Wednesday, said her focus would be on conducting free and fair elections in the city.

That apart, she would try to resolve the traffic problem in Patna and streamline the weekly janata durbar so that people's grievances are addressed properly, she told The Telegraph.

Pratima began her first day attending chief minister Nitish Kumar's programme in Digha and expressed concerns for city residents. But she said she would take time to understand the city. For now, her priority remains conducting free and fair elections in 14 constituencies of the district. "I am taking it as a challenge," she said at her collectorate office.

Pratima said: "I am going through all files. An Election Commission team will be visiting here soon. The district administration is ready to give all possible assistance."

The 2002-batch Bihar cadre IAS officer hails from Karnataka and was posted as Muzaffarpur sub-divisional officer in 2004 and later deputy development commissioner in Nalanda. On Tuesday evening, 2004-batch IAS officer Abhay Kumar Singh - now transferred as under-secretary in the general administration department - handed over charge of the district to Pratima. The 39-year-old IAS officer has earlier served as DM in Sheikhpura, Vaishali and Bhojpur. Before Patna, Pratima was Sitamarhi DM. She can speak Marathi, Kannada, Hindi and English fluently. She has done an MBBS from MR Medical College, Gulbarga, in Karnataka.

She said being Patna DM was totally different for holding similar posts elsewhere, as it involved greater challenges. "The city needs many things since it is the state's capital. I will try to perform to the best of my ability," she said.

Asked about the traffic problem in the city, she said: "As it is my first day in office, I am trying to understand the city. However, I will try my level best to resolve and streamline traffic in the city. I will also see what else could be implemented for the convenience of commuters."

Talking about the weekly janata durbars on Thursday, considered one of the most important tasks for the DM, she said: "I held regular janata darbars in all the districts I was posted in. Though I am not aware about the way my previous colleagues organised it in Patna, I spend four weeks on the applications we receive each week and ensure that necessary steps are taken to solve the issues by then."