THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state government is in the process of finding a successor to state police chief Anil Kant, who is set to retire by June 30. The police headquarters has started preparing a list of senior IPS officers eligible to be appointed as the next state police chief.
To be included in the panel, the officer must have completed a minimum of 30 years of service and have at least six months of service left at the time of selection. There are eight eligible officers who will be considered for inclusion in the state government’s panel, which will be sent to the centre.
The centre’s empanelment committee, headed by the UPSC chairman/member and comprising five officials, will shortlist three names that will be returned to the state. The state government can then choose one among them for an appointment.
The eligible officers for the top post in the state are CRPF ADGP Nitin Agrawal, Headquarters ADGP K Padmakumar, Crimes ADGP Shaik Darvesh Saheb, Intelligence Bureau Additional Directors Harinath Mishra and Ravada A Chandrasekhar, Civil Supplies Corporation MD Sanjeeb Kumar Patjoshi, Intelligence ADGP T K Vinod Kumar and Beverages Corporation MD Yogesh Gupta. However, the consent of the three officers on central deputation will be sought and if they agree to be part of the race for selection of the next police chief, their names will be included in the state government’s panel.
The Government of India empanelled Nitin as Director General last year, which made him eligible for appointment to the post of Director General in central services.
Harinath and Ravada did not give consent for including their names in the panel last time ahead of selecting a replacement for Loknath Behera. The government will now communicate with the three officers to see if they are willing to be included in the panel.