Former Director General of CRPF and decorated retired IPS officer K Vijay Kumar will be conferred with the Padma Shri by President Droupadi Murmu during a special investiture ceremony scheduled on May 25. The retired officer is among the recipients of India’s fourth-highest civilian award for distinguished service.
K Vijay Kumar, a 1975-batch IPS officer of the Tamil Nadu cadre, is regarded as one of India’s most prominent police officers in the fields of counter-insurgency and strategic policing. Over a career spanning nearly four decades, he held several important positions in state and central security institutions and played a role in some of the country’s major anti-insurgency operations.
He is widely remembered for leading the Tamil Nadu Special Task Force during Operation Cocoon, the 2004 operation that ended the decades-long pursuit of forest brigand and sandalwood smuggler Veerappan. The operation is considered one of the most significant anti-bandit operations in the country.
Kumar also served in the Special Protection Group (SPG), Border Security Force (BSF) and later headed the Central Reserve Police Force as Director General from 2010 to 2012. He was brought into the CRPF leadership during a difficult phase after the force suffered heavy casualties in the Dantewada Maoist attack in 2010. During his tenure, the force strengthened its counter-insurgency approach in Left Wing Extremism-affected regions.
After retirement, Kumar continued to contribute in national security roles. He served as Senior Security Adviser in the Ministry of Home Affairs and also worked as Adviser to the Governor of Jammu and Kashmir. He later returned as Senior Security Adviser in the Union Home Ministry.
Over the course of his service, Kumar received several honours including the President’s Police Medal for Gallantry, President’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service and Police Medal for Meritorious Service. The Padma Shri adds another recognition to his long public service career.
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