With the retirement of Odisha DGP Y B Khurania (IPS:1990:OR) due on August 31, the process of selecting his successor has entered in crucial stage, with the state government proposing a panel of 11 senior IPS officers to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).
The move comes after the Commission reportedly asked the state to broaden its earlier list of three officers, paving the way for a wider selection pool before a final shortlist is prepared. According to officials, Odisha had initially forwarded three names earlier this month, but following UPSC’s directions, the state last week submitted an expanded panel of 11 eligible officers.
The panel of probable candidates includes 1990-batch IPS officer Sudhanshu Sarangi; 1993-batch officers Susanta Kumar Nath and R P Koche; 1994-batch officers Sanjeeb Panda and Yeshwant Kumar Jethwa; 1995-batch officers Ritu Arora, Saumendra Priyadarshi, Santosh Bala and P S Ranpise; and 1996-batch officers Arun Bothra and Sunita Kakran. Among them, Sarangi, Nath and Koche are DGP-ranked officers, while the remaining officers are serving at the ADGP level with over three decades of service.
As per the established procedure, the state government forwards names of eligible officers to UPSC, which then scrutinises the candidates based on service records, seniority and other eligibility conditions before shortlisting three names. The state government subsequently appoints one officer from the final panel as the Director General of Police.
Officials said UPSC’s role is to select three names from a larger group of candidates and therefore forwarding only three names limits the scope of the process. Consequently, Odisha revised its proposal and submitted a broader panel of officers meeting the eligibility criteria.
Odisha currently has four DGP-ranked officers besides incumbent DGP Y B Khurania — Sudhanshu Sarangi, Susanta Kumar Nath, R P Koche and Vinaytosh Mishra. However, Vinaytosh Mishra, currently serving as DG (Crime Branch), is out of contention as he is scheduled to retire in November and does not meet the six-month residual service condition.
Though the final decision will be taken after UPSC prepares its shortlist, Sudhanshu Sarangi, Susanta Kumar Nath, and R P Koche are being viewed as front-runners, while Sanjeeb Panda and Yeshwant Kumar Jethwa are also emerging as strong contenders for the top police post.
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