Paul takes over as Meghalaya governor, calls for peace and harmony

Former Delhi Police chief Krishan Kant Paul, who was sworn-in as the new governor of Meghalaya Monday, urged the people of this mountainous state to maintain peace and harmony for growth and development.

"Peace is essential for growth and prosperity. We need to facilitate a conducive social environment, to enable the willing participation of all sections of society for inclusive development," Paul said after being administered the oath by Meghalaya High Court Chief Justice T. Meena Kumari at the Raj Bhavan here.

Urging the government to ensure the highest standards of governance built on the principles of transparency and accountability, he said the "interest of our people, particularly the poor, should be supreme".

"In this abode of clouds (Meghalaya), let us all work together, try to reach for the stars and prove that our land is both, beautiful and bountiful," Paul said.

Stating that northeast and particularly Meghalaya are endowed with huge untapped natural resources and acknowledged as the eastern gateway of India's Look East Policy, he said the investments made, and those committed, will open up new avenues for agricultural growth and economic transformation through development of the region at a much faster pace.

However, Paul sounded a word of caution saying that development should be balanced and must not disrupt the harmony between man and nature.

Chief Minister Mukul Sangma, members of his council of ministers, assembly Speaker Abu Taher Mondal and Leader of Opposition Donkupar Roy were among those who attended the ceremony.

Paul, 65, was Delhi Police commissioner from February 2004 to July 2007 and became a member of the Union Public Service Commission July 26, 2007. He had also served in the Intelligence Bureau and the Research and Analysis Wing.

An avid cricket lover, Paul is credited with having cracked the betting racket in which South African captain Hansie Cronje was indicted. The 1970 batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer is also credited with nabbing serial killer and conman Charles Sobhraj.

Married to Omita Paul, who is currently secretary to President Pranab Mukherjee, Paul carries a wide range of experience of urban policing and internal security. He was involved in handling a mega event like the Asian Games in 1982 in New Delhi and the Non-Aligned Movement summit in New Delhi in 1983.

An MSc and PhD in chemistry from Panjab University, Paul joined the IPS in 1970 and was granted the AGMUT (Arunachal Pradesh-Goa-Mizoram-Union Territories) cadre, under which he was first posted at Andaman and Nicobar Islands and then served as the chief of Arunachal Pradesh Police.