The Centre has appointed Amitendra Nath Sinha (IPS: 2002: OD), presently Inspector General in the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), as Inspector General in the Border Security Force (BSF) on a lateral shift basis.
The appointment will continue up to July 10, 2028. Sinha counts his central deputation tenure with effect from July 11, 2023, meaning the BSF posting is a continuation of his existing five-year combined central tenure rather than a fresh deputation.
The order was issued on September 16, 2026, and places the 2002-batch Odisha-cadre officer at Pay Level 14 in BSF, one of India’s principal border-guarding forces under the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Who is Amitendra Nath Sinha?
Sinha is a direct-recruit IPS officer of the 2002 batch, allotted to the Odisha cadre. He joined the Indian Police Service on September 2, 2002, and has completed about 24 years of service. His home state is Bihar. He holds LLB and LLM qualifications.
Before moving to the Centre, he served as Inspector General, CID-Crime Branch, in Odisha Police. In June 2023, the Ministry of Home Affairs approved his deputation to CRPF as Inspector General. He assumed charge in the CRPF Odisha Sector later that year, taking over from Sandeep Khirwar. In that role he oversaw sector operations that included general duty battalions and a CoBRA unit engaged in anti-Naxal duties, besides coordination with the state police.
In February 2026, he was honoured with a President’s Medal at a CRPF parade in Guwahati for his service record and leadership. Earlier, he had also received the Police Antrik Suraksha Seva Padak in 2013.
What a lateral shift means
A lateral shift allows an officer already on central deputation in one Central Armed Police Force to move to another CAPF at the same rank without restarting the deputation clock. In Sinha’s case, the five-year combined tenure that began on July 11, 2023, will now be completed in BSF, subject to further orders. Similar IG-level lateral shifts into BSF have been used by the Home Ministry in recent years to fill leadership vacancies quickly.
Sinha will now move from an internal-security and counter-insurgency command environment in CRPF to the BSF’s border-management mandate along India’s international frontiers. The date of assumption of charge in BSF is expected to be intimated to the Ministry after he is relieved from CRPF.
