NEW DELHI: The MHA on Wednesday appointed 1984 batch IPS officer
Rakesh Asthana as the director general of
Narcotics Control Bureau
(NCB).
Asthana
will hold the position as an additional charge, the order said.
Asthana is currently director general of Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS). He was posted there in the aftermath of his feud with sacked CBI director Alok Verma last year. Astana's appointment to NCB is being seen as the government initiating a countrywide crackdown on the drugs menace, people familiar with the development said. The NCB is likely to intensify its operations in Delhi, J&K and Punjab in the coming weeks, a source said.
Asthana was given additional charge after the previous director general Abhay was posted as director of National Police Academy in Hyderabad last month. The appointment order said Asthana will hold additional charge for six months or till the appointment of a regular DG or till further orders.