Uma Shankar Dash, Prateek Singh take over as DCPs of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack
BHUBANESWAR: Uma Shankar Dash and Prateek Singh took over as the new deputy commissioners of police (DCPs) of Bhubaneswar and Cuttack, respectively on Monday. The state government had announced their appointments on July 14.
Outgoing DCPs Anup Kumar Sahoo (Bhubaneswar) and Akhileshvar Singh (Cuttack) handed over the charge to their successors at the presence of commissioner of police Sudhanshu Sarangi at the commissionerate police headquarters.
The new DCPs said crime control and Covid-19 management would be their focus areas. The CP Sarangi explained to his new deputies the challenges of urban policing and difference of the normal district police system and the commissionerate system.
“I held a brief meeting after they took over and explained them some of the issues. I hope to discuss further in the next 2/3 days on what we are currently doing. I have asked them to first meet their officers, discuss with them and then we discuss priority areas. The familiarisation will take a week,” Sarangi said.
Welcoming Dash and Singh into the commissionerate police system, Sarangi praised Dash’s role in conducting Puri Rath Yatra amid the Covid pandemic and hailed Singh’s efforts in containing left-wing extremism (LWE) in Kandhamal during their last postings as SPs of Puri and Kandhamal.
While bidding adieu to Sahoo and Akhileshvar, the police commissioner Sarangi appreciated the former DCPs for their good work and successful tenures in the twin cities. “Sahoo successfully conducted the Men’s Hockey World Cup at Kalinga Stadium in 2018 and general elections in 2019. His contributions in crime prevention and detection were praiseworthy. At least 15 notorious criminals were booked under the stringent national security act (NSA) during his tenure of nearly two years and four months,” Sarangi said.
The CP said Akhileshvar, who held the office of Cuttack DCP for nearly three years, led a series of operations against anti-socials. Sarangi gave elbow bumps to the outgoing DCPs and wished them luck for their new assignments. While Sahoo took up new charge as the deputy inspector general (intelligence), Akhileshvar joined as the new SP of Puri district.