Rakesh Asthana appointed Director General of Border Security Force

Senior IPS officer Rakesh Asthana was on Monday appointed Director General of Border Security Force (BSF), a government order said.

Asthana, a 1984-batch officer of Gujarat cadre, is presently Director General of Bureau of Civil Aviation with additional charge of Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB).

He will also hold additional charge of NCB along with that of BSF. He will remain in the post till July 31 next year, when he retires, or till further orders whichever is earlier.

ITBP Director General S S Deswal has been holding additional charge of BSF so far.

Asthana, who is considered close to both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, was in the eye of controversy earlier after he and the then-CBI Director Alok Verma levelled allegations of corruption against each other when he was in the investigating agency as Special Director.

It was speculated that the government wanted Asthana to take over as CBI Director but Verma had objected much before at the time of his induction into the CBI as Special Director. As the fight between the two escalated, the government shifted both the officials from the CBI.

VSK Kaumudi, a 1986-batch officer of Andhra Pradesh cadre and presently Director General of Bureau of Police Research and Development, has been appointed as Special Secretary (Internal Security) in the Ministry of Home Affairs.

The Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guard also will get a new chief in Mohd Jawed Akthar, who is presently Special Director General in CRPF.