Hyderabad: Senior IPS officer Mahesh Muralidhar Bhagwat has been appointed the new Police Commissioner of Hyderabad as the Telangana government ordered a major reshuffle of 21 IPS officers on Thursday.
Bhagwat, a 1995-batch IPS officer, was serving as Director General of Police (Law and Order) before the new appointment. He will replace V.C. Sajjanar, who has been transferred to head the Telangana Fire, Disaster Response, Emergency and Civil Defence department.
The orders were issued on November 12 as part of a wide-ranging administrative reshuffle involving several senior police officials. Key departments, including law and order, the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), intelligence, prisons and transport, have also seen changes.
V.C. Sajjanar Moved To Fire Services Department
Sajjanar, who was serving as Hyderabad Police Commissioner, has been appointed Director General of Telangana Fire, Disaster Response, Emergency and Civil Defence. He has also been given the full additional charge of Director General of the Special Protection Force (SPF) until further orders.
Bhagwat’s appointment brings him back to a major city policing role. He has earlier served as the Commissioner of Police of the erstwhile Rachakonda commissionerate and has held senior responsibilities in the state’s law and order department.
Key Changes In Telangana Police Department
The reshuffle also includes several other senior appointments. IPS officer Akun Sabharwal, a 2001-batch officer who was awaiting a posting, has been appointed Additional Director General of Police. He has also been given additional responsibilities in the Coordination and Technical Services departments.
Senior IPS officer Charu Sinha has been appointed full-time Director General of the Anti-Corruption Bureau. She will continue to hold the additional charge of Director General of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).
Dr Soumya Mishra has been moved from the Prisons Department to head the Women Safety, SHE Teams and Bharosa divisions. Swati Lakra has been appointed Director General of Prisons.
Dr Anil Kumar, who was heading Greyhounds and OCTOPUS operations, has been appointed Vice-Chairman and Managing Director of the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TGSRTC).
Y. Nagi Reddy, who was serving as the RTC Managing Director, has been transferred as Commissioner of Civil Supplies and Ex-Officio Principal Secretary. M. Stephen Raveendra has been appointed Director of the newly formed Telangana Traffic Management, Road and Rail Safety Bureau.
Vikram Singh Mann, who was heading the Fire Services department, has been moved to lead Greyhounds and OCTOPUS operations. S. Chandrasekhar Reddy has been appointed Director of the ACB, while Intelligence Inspector General Karthikeya has been posted as Inspector General of Police, Multizone-I, with additional charge of the Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC).
The latest orders mark a major change in the senior leadership of the Telangana police department, with new responsibilities assigned across several important wings.