In a significant milestone, Senior IPS officer Nina Singh has assumed office as the first woman Director General of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), a pivotal central force responsible for safeguarding civil airports and critical installations.
Singh, who previously served as DG in-charge of CISF, took charge after her predecessor, Sheel Vardhan Singh, retired on August 31. The ceremonial transition was marked with a guard of honour at the CISF headquarters, attended by her husband, IAS officer, and Union consumer affairs secretary Rohit Kumar Singh.
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) formalized Singh’s appointment through an order issued on Thursday. Hailing from Bihar, Singh pursued her education at Patna Women’s College, obtaining Master’s degrees from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and Harvard. Her impressive academic background includes training in social program evaluation at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA. Notably, she co-authored research papers with Economics Nobel laureates Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo from MIT, focusing on evidence-based police reform initiatives.
CISF chief PRO Shrikant Kishore highlighted Singh’s accolades, including the President’s Police Medal for Meritorious Service in 2005, the President’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service in 2014, and the ‘Ati Utkrisht Seva Medal’ in 2020. She has also been honored with the Indira Gandhi Priyadarshini Award and the Nari Shakti Samman. Her commitment to evidence-based policing earned her the title of ‘Champion of Evidence-Based Policing’ from the Cambridge University Police Executive Programme, UK.
Further, it is pertinent to note that, in her service spanning more than three decades, Singh held extensive experience within the CISF since 2021, where she held positions as Additional DG, Special DG, and DG in-charge. Singh’s remarkable career also includes serving as Joint Director of CBI from 2013 to 2018. During this period, she oversaw high-profile cases related to corruption, economic offenses, bank frauds, and sports integrity.
Singh also holds the distinction of being the first woman IPS officer allocated to the Rajasthan cadre. Over her 34-year career, she has undertaken critical assignments in the state, garnering expertise in police administration, training, criminal investigation, and maintaining public order.
