Jogendra Kumar appointed Prayagraj police commissioner in major IPS reshuffle in Uttar Pradesh

LUCKNOW: In a major reshuffle of senior IPS officers, the Uttar Pradesh govt appointed Jogendra Kumar, the current Inspector General (IG) of Kanpur Range, as the new Commissioner of Police (CP), Prayagraj. He replaced Tarun Gauba, who was posted as IG, Lucknow Range. Notably, Jogendra Kumar previously served as SSP Allahabad in 2016. Prior to his posting as CP in Prayagraj, Tarun Gauba was IG Lucknow Range. He was shifted in June 2024 ahead of Maha Kumbh.The high-level reshuffle involves the transfer and appointment of 11 senior IPS officers across the state, aimed at boosting administrative efficiency and strengthening law enforcement. A 2007-batch IPS officer, Jogendra Kumar brings with him extensive experience in both field policing and operational leadership. He earlier served as Superintendent of Police (SP) in Hamirpur, Mau, and Fatehgarh, and as Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) in Varanasi, Prayagraj, Bareilly, Ayodhya, and Agra. He also held the post of DIG/SSP Gorakhpur, where he was lauded for solving over 250 cases in just seven months in 2020.In 2012, during his posting in Mau, Kumar led a successful operation in which two notorious criminals were gunned down in an encounter. For his bravery, he was awarded the Police Gallantry Medal by the President of India in 2015.Other key changes include the transfer of IG Upendra Agarwal from Lucknow Range to IG PAC, Lucknow, while Ashutosh Kumar, who was serving as IG PAC, has been posted as Additional CP, Kanpur Commissionerate.Harish Chandra, Additional CP in Kanpur, has been appointed as DIG, Kanpur Range. Sanjeev Tyagi, Additional CP in Agra Commissionerate, has been posted as DIG, Prisons Department, and Hemant Kutiyal, who held the dual charge of DIG Prisons and UPSSF, has been relieved of the Prisons responsibility, continuing with UPSSF alone.Ram Badan Singh, Additional CP Noida, has been transferred as Additional CP, Agra Commissionerate, and Pradeep Gupta, DIG Telecom, has been shifted in the same capacity to the Prisons Department. Ramesh Chandra Gupta, SP Logistics, has been posted as Commandant, PAC Moradabad, replacing Amit Kumar, who has now been moved as Commandant, PAC Lucknow.