Appointment of Anup Kumar Singh was approved by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet

Senior IPS officer of Gujarat cadre Anup Kumar Singh has been appointed as director general of the National Security Guard (NSG), an official order said on Friday.

The appointment of Mr Singh, a 1985-batch IPS officer, as the DG of the ''black cats commando'' force was approved by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The post was lying vacant for over two months after the retirement of Sudeep Lakhtakia, a 1984-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer of Telangana cadre.

"The appointment (of Singh) will be from the date of joining the post and up to September 30, 2020 i.e. date of his superannuation or till further orders, whichever is earlier," an order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training said.

The NSG was raised as the federal contingency force to counter terrorists and hijack-like incidents in 1984.

The commandos of the force are based in five hubs across the country, apart from their main garrison in Gurgaon's Manesar. They also render personal security to some of the most high-profile VVIPs like Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and some chief ministers.