A fortnight after he received a government order intimating him about his new posting, Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Kallol Biswas awaits another order, perhaps his last from the state government. The Andhra Pradesh cadre officer has been ordered to take compulsory retirement by the Centre as a disciplinary action based on the report submitted by a committee comprising senior state officials. Biswas is currently the joint secretary in the education department in Andhra Pradesh. The Centre has officially communicated to the state about the decision but the AP government is yet to execute it.
“He has been informed about the development. An order will be out in a couple of days after which he will be relieved,” said a state government official in Amaravathi.
Biswas was lauded for his work in tribal areas near Vizag. But, he first shot to limelight when he was posted as the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of Anantapur in AP. He went after mining baron Gali Janaradhan Reddy and was instrumental in cancelling the mining licences of Obalapuram Mining Company. He tried to expose the violations committed by the company owned by the former Karnataka legislator. Later, the case was investigated by the CBI and Kallol came to be known as the whistleblower.
In the later years, the officer’s career and reputation went into a downward spiral. He was accused of misconduct and violations. He was also absconding for a long period, thereby prompting action by the government. According to sources, fearing threat to his life, Kallol did not report to work at regular intervals.
When THE WEEK tried to contact Kallol, he refused to react. “I do not want to say anything,” he said.
The committee, consisting of officials from the forest department and headed by former Chief Secretary of AP, Dinesh Kumar, had submitted the report recommending his ‘sacking’ almost a year ago. It is learnt that the committee members felt that Kallol had neglected his duty and also resorted to violations. The committee had sent the report when Telugu Desam Party (TDP) was in power in the state.
Kallol was active in erstwhile Andhra Pradesh when the Congress was in power. His work also led the investigating agencies to probe the ties between Gali Janardhan Reddy and former chief minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy’s family. Surprisingly, Kallol got a posting, usually reserved for IAS officers, after Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy came to power.
