2 IGs, 2 DIGs, 6 SSPs being promoted to higher ranks
Ram Lubhaya, Gopal Reddy, HK Lohia, Pankaj Saxena tipped for elevation

Ahmed Ali Fayyaz

SRINAGAR, Jan 4: New Year is carrying a bonanza of rank promotion for a number of senior and middle rung officers in Jammu & Kashmir Police as two Inspectors General of Police, two Deputy Inspectors General of Police and half-a-dozen Senior Superintendents of Police are likely to be elevated to higher ranks. Cabinet is expected to take a decision in its meeting on Thursday next even as the elevation is yet to be cleared by respective Departmental Promotion Committees (DPCs) in favour of the senior Police officers.

With a number of positions falling vacant due to retirement of incumbents and central deputations, state government is likely to promote a number of top and middle ranking Police officials, albeit in their own pay and grade. Those tipped to be elevated to the rank of Additional DGP include IGP Security Ram Lubhaya and IGP Home Guard, Civil Defence and Railways Gopal Reddy, both regular recruits of 1985. Sources said that both of them were due to get rank promotion against substantive posts of ADGs by the end of current year but, in keeping with a much repeated tradition, they were likely to be promoted and placed in their own pay and grade till confirmation at the maturity of their term.

On one point of time in recent past, as many as six officers had been granted the rank of ADG against three substantive posts. While as DG (Transport Commissioner) M K Mohanty has reached superannuation on December 31, 2009, DG Prisons Dr Ashok Bhan is due for retirement in a few months from now. They are following Radha Vinod Raju, who proceeded to Central deputation and simultaneously retirement from service, and P S Gill, who was last year appointed as DG of Police in his home state of Punjab.

With another 1985-batch IPS officer, S K Mishra, being on the Central deputation (BSF), Ram Lubhaya and Gopal Reddy are two-odd contenders for the rank promotion as ADGs.

Since a 1992-batch IPS officer, Rashmi Ranjan Swain, is on Central deputation (Research & Analysis Wing), DIG Central Kashmir and Ladakh, Hemant Kumar Lohia, and DIG Traffic Jammu, Pankaj Kumar Saxena, are likely to be promoted to the rank of IGP. Swain will be entitled to proforma promotion.


Sources said that in case of these promotions and also in order to extend some benefit to the State Police Service (SPS), Government was likely to elevate six officers of the rank of SSP to the level of DIG. One-odd regular recruit (RR) of the group, namely Munish Sinha, has returned from the Central deputation last month. The SPS officers being considered for promotion to the rank of DIG include SSP CID Headquarters, Sham Lal Sharma, Director PTTI Vijaypur, Jagjit Kumar, SSP Rajouri, Shafqat Wattali, SSP Crime Branch Jammu, J P Singh, and SSP Railways Kashmir, Mubarak Ahmed Ganai.

In this particular group, AIG (Personnel), Naseeruddin Wani, is unlikely to get the instant benefit as he is yet to be recommended by a Central Administrative Tribunal, which he had approached to get his grievance of seniority redressed.

Government is said to be considering nominations for the vacancies of DIG Vigilance, DIG P&T P Hqs, Director Police Telecommunications, Joint Director Sher-e-Kashmir Police Training Academy Udhampur, Director Civil Military Liaison besides two posts of DIGs in IRP in Kashmir and Jammu. Even after Suleman Salaria had been recently appointed as DIG Vigilance, Commissioner Vigilance P L Gupta is said to have requisitioned for a separate incumbent as DIG for Kashmir in State Vigilance Organisation.

Sources said that Department of Home was presently considering whether these rank promotions could be recommended and subsequently sanctioned by Cabinet in anticipation of clearance from DPCs.

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