Shillong, Sept. 27: Assam police official N. Ramachandran was appointed the Meghalaya director-general of police while the acting state DGP Prem Singh was made the director-general of civil defence and homeguards here.

Despite objections from the Opposition NCP and the state NGOs, in a notification issued last night, the home department appointed Ramachandran (1978 batch) the new DGP as the government has been appointing only acting DGPs since 2007.

However, the appointment will be only for a year, as Ramachandran will retire in October next year.

In a separate notification issued by the home department last night, the acting state DGP, Singh (1977 batch) was appointed the director-general of civil defence and home guards.

The post fell vacant after the retirement of senior police official W.R. Marbaniang in August.

There was widespread criticism from various quarters against the appointment of Ramachandran as the new Meghalaya DGP since he had never served in the state.

Another criticism was that the state government has bypassed seniority in appointing the new DGP.

The state security commission had shortlisted other senior police officials, Kulbir Krishan (1976 batch), Subhash Goswami and acting Meghalaya DGP Prem Singh (both 1977 batch) and Jayanto Narayan Choudhury (1978) to the post of police chief.

Opposition leader Conrad Sangma and a member of the security commission recently said during the first meeting of the commission, he had pleaded for preference to a police official from the state for the post of new DGP. He said there was no dearth of experienced police officials in the state to the top post.

Three NGOs — Khasi Students Union, Federation of Khasi, Jaintia, Garo People and Civil Society Women’s Organisation — in their memorandum said a police official from Assam will be passive in supporting Meghalaya’s cause during a border dispute.

The members of another NGO, Hynniewtrep National Achik Movement, also met home minister H.D.R. Lyngdoh yesterday demanding the appointment of a state police official to the post of DGP.

Lyngdoh said the appointment of Ramachandran would only be for a year, as he will be retiring next year.

He added that after the tenure of Ramachandran, the state will get a new DGP probably P.J.P. Hanman (1979 batch), brother of Assembly Speaker Charles Pyngrope.

The government has to wait for a year to get Hanman relieved of his current foreign assignment in Nepal.

According to the home minister, Hanman is not only from the state, but also a son of the soil.

Asked about the memorandum of submitted to the chief minister, the home minister said he had no knowledge of it and added that the NGOs should have first met him before going to the chief minister. He also downplayed the allegation of the NGOs that Ramachandran does not have the experience of serving in the state by saying that the junior police officials in the state will be assisting him.

Lyngdoh also said though the tenure of the new DGP is a year, this will not affect the functioning of the state police.