New Chief Secretary Shiv Das Meena (L) and DGP Shankar Jiwal, the Head of Police Force. (Creative Commons)
The Tamil Nadu government appointed Shiv Das Meena and DGP Shankar Jiwal as the state’s chief secretary and police chief, respectively, on Thursday, 29 June.
They would replace V Irai Anbu and DGP C Sylendra Babu, who would retire from service on Friday.
Meena, a 1989-batch IAS officer hailing from Rajasthan, began his carrier as an assistant collector in Kanchipuram. He had also served in the Coimbatore and Nagapattinam districts.
He was serving as the secretary of the Municipal Administration and Water Supply (MAWS) Department after his return from central deputation in 2021.
Meena joined the Ministry for Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) as a joint secretary and was later promoted to additional secretary on deputation.
Subsequently, he served as the chairman of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). After the DMK returned to power in May 2021, he was called back to his parent cadre.
Meena also served as one of the four secretaries (Secretary 2) to former chief minister J Jayalalithaa during the AIADMK regime. He will be the 49th chief secretary of Tamil Nadu.
DGP Shankar Jiwal, a 1990-batch Tamil Nadu-cadre IPS officer, will now lead the state police force for the next two years. He hails from Uttarakhand.
The MK Stalin-led government appointed him as the state police chief superseding two seniors — Sanjay Arora, the commissioner of police in Delhi, and BK Ravi.
Jiwal has served the force in various capacities, including as the inspector-general in charge of Internal Security in 2008.
Starting his career as assistant superintendent of police in Madurai, he had been the superintendent of police in Salem. He also headed the Special Task Force (STF), headquartered at Sathyamangalam in the Erode district, for six years.
He was also the police commissioner of Tiruchy and ADGP of the Armed Police.
The Narcotics Control Bureau recorded the country’s largest heroin seizure when Jiwal was serving as its south zonal director between 2004 and 2006.
The officer is a recipient of several awards, including the President’s Police Medal for Meritorious Service (2007), and the President’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service (2019).
Jiwal was elevated to the state’s top police post while serving as the commissioner of Chennai.
The government named Sandeep Rai Rathore, who was recently promoted to DGP, to succeed Jiwal as the commissioner of the Greater Chennai Police.
New Commissioner of Greater Chennai Police, Sandeep Rai Rathore
Rathore, a 1992-batch officer was the first commissioner of the Avadi police after it was bifurcated from the Chennai Police Commissionerate.
Rathore, a native of Delhi, holds the credit for introducing LEDs at traffic signals in Chennai. He introduced them while he was joint commissioner of traffic in 2001.
The officer also served as the superintendent of police in Dindigul, Thoothukudi, and CB-CID in Chennai, deputy commissioner of police in Coimbatore, deputy commissioner of police (Crime & Traffic) in North Chennai, joint commissioner of police, Central Chennai, and Headquarters, and deputy inspector general in Salem.
Rathore served as the commandant in Tihar jail, deputy inspector general of the Central Industrial Security Force in charge of airport security and the Delhi Metro Rail.
He was deputed to Bosnia as part of the United Nations Peace Keeping Mission in Bosnia.
Rathore also worked as the inspector general of the National Disaster Response Force and Civil Defence (NDRF).
May 16, 2024
May 15, 2024
May 15, 2024
May 15, 2024
May 14, 2024
May 13, 2024
