New Delhi, Jun 25 : The government on Thursday appointed senior IPS officer Mahesh Dixit as the Director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB), the country’s premier internal intelligence agency.
Dixit, a 1993-batch IPS officer of the Andhra Pradesh cadre, will succeed Tapan Kumar Deka, a 1988-batch Himachal Pradesh cadre officer. He is currently serving as Special Director in the IB.
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister, approved his appointment, an official order said. Dixit will have a two-year tenure from the date of assuming charge, it added.
The government has granted him extension in service under FR 56(d) provisions and Rule 16(1A) of the All India Services (Death-cum-Retirement Benefits) Rules, 1958, to facilitate the appointment, the order stated.
Dixit, widely considered a seasoned Kashmir hand, had served as Chief of the IB’s Subsidiary Intelligence Bureau (SIB) in Srinagar during a critical period that witnessed major political and security developments in the region. He oversaw intelligence operations across Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh and played a key role in security coordination following the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019.
Meanwhile, Tapan Kumar Deka, who completed his tenure, had been heading the IB since June 2022.
