Sanjukta Parashar: Assam Cop Is CRPF CoBRA's 1st Woman Chief

IPS officer Sanjukta Parashar has been appointed as the first woman Inspector General (IG) of the Central Reserve Police Force's CoBRA, the paramilitary force's special jungle warfare commando unit. 

Parashar, a 2006-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer from the Assam-Meghalaya cadre, will succeed 1996-batch IPS officer Danesh Rana as the IG of the Commando Battalion for Resolute Action (CoBRA).

Sanjukta Parashar, the then NIA DIG, received a medal for excellence for Police training from Union Home Minister Amit Shah in April 2022
Photo Credit: PTI

The CRPF raised CoBRA in 2008-09 to tackle Left Wing Extremism (LWE) in multiple Indian states and insurgency in certain Northeast states.

Who Is Sanjukta Parashar

Born in October 1979, Sanjukta Parashar is also known as Assam's "Iron Lady".

She has previously served in the National Investigation Agency (NIA), in addition to working in her cadre state of Assam.

The 46-year-old had led several counterinsurgency operations in Assam, particularly in the state's upper region.  

She completed her early education in Assam and later moved to Delhi for higher studies.

She graduated in political science from Indraprastha College, Delhi University, and later her master's in international relations from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).

Parashar then cleared the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and joined the Indian Police Service (IPS).

She has over 76,000 followers on Facebook and more than 24,000 followers on Instagram.