KOCHI: The Kerala Police, which currently boast four DGP-rank officers, excluding state chief, and 10 ADGPs, are seriously considering a proposal to overhaul the force by bringing in junior officers to the coveted posts. Traditionally these positions have been held by officers in the rank of DGP and ADGP.
As per the proposal, the charge of North and South Zones will be given to officers in the rank of Inspector
Generals (IG). Furthermore, a new DGP exclusively for law and order under state police chief Loknath Behera is also being heavily considered.
The post of North Zone ADGP, occupied by DGP-ranked Rajesh Dewan till he retired on April 30, is still lying vacant.
Dewan was the first officer in the DGP rank to be posted as a zone head in the state. Home Department officers said the appointment of a new ADGP for North Zone has been put on hold for considering the new proposal.The officers said it was being extensively discussed, especially after police came under severe criticism following a couple of incidents.
As per the new proposal being discussed by higher-ups in the state government, the charge of North Zone and South Zone will go to officers in the rank of IG while officers in DIG rank will be given the task to handle the respective ranges (Kannur, Thrissur, Ernakulam and Thiruvananthapuram) which are currently being handled by IG-rank officers.
Highly placed sources in Home Department told Express the state government had held discussions with former DGP Raman Srivastava, who has been advising the Chief Minister in policing matters.
Asked about the development, Behera dismissed it as a mere rumour and said a lot of proposals were being discussed at various times by the department.
While a section of senior police officers said the move to appoint IGs as north and south zone heads would be challenging as the post required officers with immense experience in handling law and order, a few others said if the government appoints upright young officers to the posts, then the move would yield the desired results.
Proposal in nutshell
As per the new proposal being discussed by higher-ups in the state government, the charge of North Zone and South Zone will go to officers in the rank of IG and DIG-rank officers will be given the task to handle the respective ranges