Thiruvananthapuram: In a major reshuffle in its police force, the Kerala government has set up two commissionerates in Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi and brought law and order under a single additional director general of police (ADGP).
The commissionerates, which will have magisterial powers, have been set up overcoming the objections of IAS officials for years. IG rank officers will now be heading the commissionerates. The chief minister has signed the files regarding the setting up of the commissionerates, leading to changes in the excise and jail department heads.
IG Dinesh Kashyap will be the new commissioner of Thiruvananthapuram while Vijay Sakhare will be the commissioner of Kochi city. North Zone ADGP Sheikh Darwesh Sahib will be the new ADGP (law and order) for the entire state.
Manoj Abraham has been named ADGP (police headquarters). ADGP S Ananthakrishnan will be the new excise commissioner. Rishi Raj Singh, who was the excise commissioner, has been named as the DGP (jail) and R Sreelekha as ADGP (traffic).
Tomin Thachankary will be the new ADGP Armed Police Battalions, while S Padmakumar, who was the ADGP Armed Police Battalions, has been moved as ADGP (coastal security).
In the reshuffle, police ranges have been brought under DIGs instead of IGs, and IGs will now head zones. New South Zone IG will be M R Ajith Kumar, while the North Zone will be under Ashok Yadav. DIG Sanjay Kumar Gurudin will be the range IG in Thiruvananthapuram, DIG Kaliraj Mahesh Kumar in Kochi, DIG S Surendran in Thrissur and K Sethuraman in Kannur ranges.
