Bhubaneswar: Odisha govt on Friday transferred 2004-batch IPS officer Deepak Kumar to Balasore as inspector general a month after he was shifted from Sambalpur to Talcher. He will be replaced in Sambalpur by IG Satyabrata Bhoi, an IPS officer of the same batch, who was posted in Balasore.
Deepak was shifted as two places — Athmalik and Chhendipada — in Angul fall under Sambalpur Lok Sabha seat after the Election Commission held that transfer of officers within the same parliamentary constituency is not acceptable. Jugal Kishor Banoth was transferred as Khurda SP in place of Siddharth Kataria, who was shifted to Kendrapada as SP.
Chief secretary Nitin Kareer announced that the state will reassess transfer orders following ECI guidelines. The ECI directed states to prevent officers from being posted within the same parliamentary constituency to maintain a level playing field in elections.
The Election Commission has directed all states and Union territories to transfer officers who have been posted for more than three years in a district to a different parliamentary constituency, ensuring compliance with the transfer policy and maintaining a level-playing field in elections.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) has instructed states to transfer officers posted in their home district or who have completed three years at a place to another parliamentary constituency before the general election. ECI wants to ensure a level playing field and has strengthened its transfer policy.
