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In a first, woman to head Sashastra Seema Bal

Last Updated 02 February 2016, 02:17 IST
Senior IPS officer Archana Ramasundaram, who faced the ire of the Tamil Nadu government for taking up central assignment, was on Monday appointed Director General of Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), breaking the glass ceiling to become the first woman to head a paramilitary force.

Ramasundaram (58), the Tamil Nadu cadre officer of 1980 batch, is currently Director, National Crime Records Bureau. She will hold the post upto the date of her superannuation in September 2017 or until further orders, whichever event takes place earlier.

The SSB guards the borders with Nepal and Bhutan. None of the five paramilitary forces – the SSB, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF), Central Industrial Security Force and the Indo Tibetan Border Police has ever had a woman chief.

Ramasundaram was in the midst of a controversy in 2014 during the UPA regime due to her appointment as Additional Director in the CBI with the Tamil Nadu government suspending her on charges of not taking its permission to move to the Centre. Later, her appointment was also challenged in the Supreme Court following which she was moved to the NCRB as its chief. A R K Kinni has been appointed as Director NCRB in place of Ramasundram. Kinni, a 1981 batch IPS officer of Bihar cadre, is currently Special DG in Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D).
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(Published 01 February 2016, 19:05 IST)

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