CHENNAI: Senior officer Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal, who is now serving as the Special Director-General of the Border Security Force (BSF), is set to be appointed as the chief of Tamil Nadu police.
While there is no official word yet, senior officials confirmed the appointment, and said the government has written to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to relieve Aggarwal. The official order will be issued after he is relieved, they said.
The State has not had a full-time Head of Police Force (HoPF) for over nine months since Shankar Jiwal retired in August 2025. The previous government had appointed G Venkataraman as in-charge, a move which did not sit well with officers who superseded him in the seniority list.
In the run up to the Assembly elections, the Election Commission replaced Venkataraman with Sandeep Rai Rathore, who continued to head the police force even after the new government assumed charge.
Last week, the Union Public Service Commission had cleared a panel of three senior IPS officers —Rajeev Kumar, Sandeep Rai Rathore, and Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal – for appointment as the HoPF of Tamil Nadu.
A 1994-batch IPS officer of the Tamil Nadu cadre, Aggarwal has served in several important posts, including as the Commissioner of Chennai and Madurai, before his central deputation.
Once appointed, he will remain the HoPF for a fixed tenure of two years from the date of assuming office as per the guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court.
Meanwhile, the State government on Friday carried out a major reshuffle involving 30 IAS officers, including the transfer of 14 Collectors and several senior officials across key departments. M Veerappan will be the new Collector of Chengalpattu, while the Tiruvallur Collector is yet to be named. The other districts that are getting new Collectors are Vellore, Madurai, Kanniyakumari, Theni, Tiruchy, Nagapattinam, Villupuram, Thanjavur, Tiruvannamalai, Tenkasi, Kallakurichi, and Tirunelveli.
Also, PWD Secretary Mangat Ram Sharma and Water Resources Department Secretary J Jayakanthan have been shifted to low-profile posts. Sharma has been appointed chairman and managing director of POWERFIN, while Jayakanthan has been posted as chairman and managing director of Poompuhar Shipping Corporation.
Among other senior-level transfers, Rural Development Commissioner P Ponniah has been posted as Commissioner of Collegiate Education, and Tamil Nadu Green Energy Corporation managing director TG Vinay is the new Commissioner of HR&CE Department.