Khandu cabinet goes full throttle: More cops, colleges, child safety, and career openings

Syllad | The Rising MeghalayaJuly 18, 2025

In a power-packed meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pema Khandu, the Arunachal Pradesh Cabinet on Friday cleared a raft of high-impact decisions designed to ramp up public safety, overhaul technical education, protect child victims, and generate local employment.

The standout move was the green signal to raise the 6th Indian Reserve Battalion (IRBn). With Arunachal already housing two State Armed Police Battalions and five IR battalions, the new force will bolster internal security, reduce dependence on Central Armed Police Forces, and open up a fresh wave of jobs for eligible youth across the state. Officials said this will directly enhance law enforcement capabilities and localised policing.

In a push to scale up technical education, the Cabinet approved the creation of 34 teaching and non-teaching posts at the Government Engineering College, Toru in Papum Pare district. This decision is expected to sharpen the state’s engineering talent pipeline and expand access to higher technical education in the region.

For child protection, the Cabinet adopted Model Guidelines for Support Persons under the POCSO Act with Arunachal-specific tweaks. These guidelines mandate the appointment of one trained support person for every ten child abuse cases to assist victims through both the pre-trial and trial stages. The framework spells out clear standards on the recruitment, roles, and accountability of these support personnel.

The Cabinet also moved to clean up the allotment of government housing, approving new Guidelines for distributing General Pool Government Quarters across the state capital and districts. The new rules aim to eliminate encroachment, misuse, and backdoor allotments, ensuring more transparency and fairness in government accommodation.

In the legal and prosecution sector, major restructuring was approved. The Cabinet cleared the creation of three Deputy Director (Prosecution) posts, ten Assistant Director (Prosecution) posts, and eighteen clerical positions within the Directorate of Prosecution. All Additional Public Prosecutors will now be re-designated as Deputy Directors, and the Pay Matrix levels for prosecutors across ranks will be revised for parity with government norms.

Further, the Cabinet okayed a cadre restructuring in the Directorate of Forensic Science at PTC Banderdewa, which includes revised Recruitment Rules for posts such as Scientist-E, Scientist-D, Scientist-C, and Laboratory Assistants. Changes include updated nomenclature and pay structures.

To give Arunachal’s civil aviation sector a lift, ten new posts were created under the Directorate of Civil Aviation. Meanwhile, the Cabinet also approved the transfer of Veterinary Officer posts from the Department of Rural Development to the Department of Animal Husbandry, Veterinary and Dairy Development (AHV&DD), streamlining functions within the livestock sector.

Friday’s flurry of Cabinet approvals signals the Khandu government’s aggressive push toward building robust governance, modern infrastructure, and responsive public service mechanisms—all while expanding employment opportunities and citizen welfare initiatives.