Ex Army officer to train Punjab police SoG; appointed as security advisor in Punjab police
Kanwar Inder Singh/ royalpatiala.in/ Chandigarh
In order to further strengthen the Special Operations Group (SoG) of State Police with improved training and equipping skills, the Punjab Government has appointed Brig. (Retd) Gautam Ganguly in the Punjab Police as Security Advisor (Training & Operations) in the rank and pay of DIG for three years.
Disclosing this here today a government spokesperson said that Gautam Ganguly had served more than 33 years in the armed forces, including four years on deputation with the National Security Guards (NSG) during 2015-19 as the NSG Force Commander handling counter terror and anti-Hijacking operations. He had also conducted numerous operational deployments in Punjab, Jammu & Kashmir and Gujarat, including execution of Operation Dhangu Suraksha (attack on Pathankot IAF Base). The Brig (Retd) Ganguly has specialized in training of Special Forces and has been involved in the capacity building training programs for OCTOPUS & Grey Hounds (Andhra Pradesh & Telangana), TNCF (Tamil Nadu), Force One (Mumbai), CHEETAK (Gujarat), KAVACH (Haryana) and ATS of Utter Pradesh, Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal and Goa, he added.
His vast operational expertise would benefit the operations and training of the SoG, the crack Counter-Terror force of Punjab, which was raised on latter’s orders in 2017. The main objective of SOG was to counter the efforts of Pakistan to ratched up & intensify its terrorist offensive in Punjab through a series of target killings in 2016 & 2017, which were threatening to disturb the hard earned peace and communal harmony in the state.
Pointing out further, the Spokesperson said that Gautam Ganguly is expected to lead operations & raids besides handling hostage situations, alongwith ADGP SoG & Operations and the SoG personnel, who have been selected, drawn and recruited from the elite Para Battalions of the Army as well as the young, fit, strong and hardy Punjab Police personnel. Apart from this, Brig. Ganguly would be entrusted with the responsibility of training, equipping and orienting the SoG to counter the various challenges posed by state sponsored terrorism emanating from across the border.
The newly appointed Security Advisor would also be involved in the training of State Armed Police Battalions, Anti-Riot Police & other Specialized units of the Punjab Police; supervising operations conducted by the SoG; undertaking extensive and qualitative training of Bomb Disposal and K9 (canine) Squads of the state police besides the modernization of weapons and equipment inventory, the Spokesperson added.
Pertinently, the Punjab Cabinet in its meeting held on Monday approved the proposal of the DGP for the re-employment of Brig. Ganguly.
June,23,2020
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