Bhubaneswar: The state government has appointed senior IPS officer Vinaytosh Mishra as the acting Director General of Police (DGP) in Odisha.

Mishra, the Director General of CID and Crime Branch, will remain in additional charge of DGP after the retirement of incumbent YB Khurania on August 16.

Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has approved a proposal in this regard, said the state government in a statement on Friday.

“After the retirement of incumbent DGP YB Khurania on August 16, Vinaytosh Mishra, DGP, CID, Crime Branch will remain in additional charge of DGP (Head of Police Force) until further orders,” added the government.

The Odisha government had earlier proposed a panel of 11 senior IPS officers to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) for appointment of a new police chief for the state.

The panel of probable candidates includes senior IPS officers Sudhanshu Sarangi, Susanta Kumar Nath, RP Koche, Sanjeeb Panda, Yeshwant Kumar Jethwa, Ritu Arora, Saumendra Priyadarshi, Santosh Bala, PS Ranpise, Arun Bothra and Sunita Kakran.

The UPSC was supposed to convene a high-level meeting on August 7 to shortlist three IPS officers from the list for selection of a new DGP for Odisha.

As per the procedure, the state government has the prerogative to appoint one among the three shortlisted IPS officers as the next DGP.

However, the meeting was postponed following a request in this regard from the state government, reports said.