A N Upadhyay takes charge as Chhattisgarh DGP

A N Upadhyay has been appointed as the Director General of Police (DGP) of Chhattisgarh.
Upadhyay (55), a 1985 batch IPS officer, is currently the acting DGP of the naxal-infested state, since his predecessor Ramniwas retired from service.
He assumed the charge as DGP last evening after his name was cleared by the state government ahead of the code of conduct for Lok Sabha elections coming into effect.
"Conducting the Lok Sabha polls in a peaceful and fair manner will be the top priority," Upadhyay told reporters yesterday.
On the naxal violence and strategies to tackle it, the DGP said the number of naxal incidents has come down.

The decision to elevate A N Upadhyay, currently the ADGP, was taken at the Departmental Promotions Committee (DPC) meeting held at Naya Raipur-based Mantralaya (Mahanadi Bhawan) on Friday, sources said.

Prior to his elevation as acting DGP, Upadhyay had served as the Officer on Special Duty (OSD), Home Department, and also held several key positions during his career.
According to official sources, Anand Kumar, a 1981 batch IPS officer from Madhya Pradesh cadre and Additional Director, Intelligence Bureau, (Delhi) was supposed to be given the reins of DGP in Chhattisgarh, however, Centre apparently delayed the process to relieve him.
After assuming the office, Updhyay made his first visit to naxal-affected Bastar region today for a formal inspection of Nakulnar village in Dantewada district, where five policemen, including a sub inspector Vivek Shukla, were killed in a Maoist ambush on Friday.

He later told reporters here that such visits boosts the morale of jawans deployed in the insurgency-hit region.