The West Bengal government has approved the central deputation of three senior IPS officers, who will now serve in paramilitary forces at the DIG rank for a tenure of five years.
West Bengal has a sanctioned IPS cadre strength of 347, but currently, only 302 officers are in service. With nine officers already on central deputation, this latest move will further reduce the state’s operational IPS strength to 290.
The three officers heading for central deputation include Nagendra Nath Tripathi, currently OSD in the state police directorate, Awadhesh Pathak, DIG of armed police stationed in Siliguri, and Annappa E, IG of civil defence. Tripathi, known for his key role during the 2021 Nandigram elections, previously served as SP of Birbhum and will now take charge as DIG in CISF. Meanwhile, Annappa E and Pathak will assume responsibilities as DIGs in CRPF.
Recently, the state also cleared the deputation of Mitesh Jain (now IG in CRPF) and Parul Kush (now SSB DIG). While Bengal had been reluctant to release IPS officers for central deputation, the situation appears to be shifting. Though the state is expected to send around 75 officers annually, officials maintain that a shortage of IPS personnel limits this allocation.
