A senior North Korean official in charge of the country's construction sector appears to have been demoted, photos carried by the North's main newspaper showed Friday, apparently due to his mishandling of assigned duties.

Pictures carried by the Rodong Sinmun showed Ma Won-chun wearing the badge of a senior colonel on his suit, lower than his previous rank of a major general. The newspaper is an organ of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea.

Ma, former director of the design department at the North's powerful National Defense Commission, was among North Korean officials who accompanied the North's leader Kim Jong-un on his inspection of a site for a new street in Pyongyang.

It is not immediately known why Ma's rank has been lowered, but speculation is rampant that he may have mishandled an important project.

Ma returned to the public eye in October last year after a one-year hiatus amid rumors that the North's leader had purged him for a mishap in the construction of a new airport terminal in Pyongyang.

When he spearheaded the construction, he was blamed for the terminal's failure to boost national character. The new terminal opened in July last year.

When he reappeared to the public last year, he was demoted to the rank of major general from a lieutenant general following the purported purge.

Under Kim's regime, Ma has been leading major construction projects such as the high-profile Masikryong Ski Resort on the North's east coast. (Yonhap)