Gujarat-cadre IPS officer Anup Kumar Singh appointed NSG chief

The Centre has appointed senior Gujarat-cadre IPS officer Anup Kumar Singh as the director general of the National Security Guard (NSG), an official order said on Friday.

His appointment was approved by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the proposal of Ministry of Home Affairs for appointment of Anup Kumar Singh, IPS (GJ/85) as Director General, National Security Guard (NSG)," the order issued by Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) said.

Singh, a 1985-batch IPS officer, is currently serving as Commissioner of Ahmedabad Police.

The appointment of Singh will be "from the date of joining the post and up to September 30, 2020 i.e. date of his superannuation or till further orders, whichever is earlier," the order said. 

The post of NSG DG was lying vacant after Sudeep Lakhtakia, a 1984-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer of Telangana cadre, retired two months ago. 

The NSG, also called 'black cat commandos', was raised as a federal contingency force to deal with terrorist attacks and hijack-like incidents in 1984.  Besides counter-terror operations, they also provide security to some high-profile VVIPs including union ministers.