IPS Vivek Raj Singh, who handled naxal, conflict affected districts, now a fitness icon is determined for more challenging postings

New Delhi, August 4

Thousands got inspired by the hardcore transformation of IPS officer Vivek Raj Singh who has become a fitness icon for his own police force on police fitness and health.

An IPS officer of 2006 batch in Assam-Meghalaya cadre, Vivek Raj believes that his fitness has pumped in new strength to his life and policing.

However, one must know that Vivek Raj Singh is much more than his recent weight loss story, a courageous cop who worked in naxal and extremism affected states of the country.

Vivek Raj is presently posted as DIG Chattarpur in Madhya Pradesh police is the (only SP rank then) to have served in three cadres of the country- Bihar, Assam-Meghalaya and Madhya Pradesh.

Vivek Raj was originally borne on Bihar cadre where he served in naxal affected areas. He received his training also in Rohtas district of Bihar.

Vivek Raj said, "I was posted as ASP Sasaram when I handled the naxal operations. As a young officer, the experience was full of learnings. As SP in Lakshisarai and Aurangabad later in Bihar, our teams made key arrests of Naxal leaders in the area".

"The naxals used to grow opium in the forest areas illegally after grabbing kand from locals. While venturing into those areas and mounting surveillance on them we saw the opium was growing with the help of sympathizers and we cracked down on them. The locals living in small villages adjoining the forests lived in fear untill certain operations eliminated naxals from the area in Aurangabad".

During his posting in Bihar around 2008, certain districts witnessed serious riots which were brought under control with the intervention of Vivek Raj who was so then.

He said, "The riots in Sasaram had brought the town under distress. I remember that when the violence was on, I walked in the riot spot and personally spoke to rioters on both sides and after some time I noticed it worked. The riots stopped and both the communities agreed to come on a consensus. It was at that time I felt that when an officer can use his mind and courage properly, any situation can be averted".

Vivek Raj also served in the railways as SP Railways Patna for a while.

He however took transfer to Assam-Meghalaya cadre after his wife, an IAS officer was borne on the same cadre. His wife Varnali Deka is a 2009 batch IAS officer.

After cadre transfer to Assam he has been posted as SP Darrang , SP Nagaon, Commandant 4th Battalion , again SP Darrang , SP CM Security Assam , SP Lakhimpur and SP Dima Hasao.

Sharing about his experience of Assam-Meghalaya, Vivek Raj said, "In Assam too, the communal tensions used to erupt while many other law and order situations due to the border conflicts and more were witnessed where I could work directly with the teams to control such situations. The extremism was high with certain proscribed groups infusing extremism in the area".

Vivek Raj was also successful in cracking down on Rhino poaching in Assam.

He added, "The Rhino poaching is a huge illegal business in Assam. One Rhino horn used to give them a profit of Rs. One crore. The income from Rhino poaching was further used to fuel extremism activities in the state".

He has worked as district SP at eight places.

After carrying out several such operations, Vivek Raj took an intercaste deputation to Madhya Pradesh cadre. He originally hails from Sagar district in MP.

He has been posted as SP PTS Sagar , SP Seoni and Deputy Director JNPA .  

Talking about MP Police, he said, "As we know MP is a peaceful state. Our focus is mainly on investigations after the offences are reported. The forensic laboratories in MP are known for their good technology band work. The state has three major training colleges- Bhopal, Indore and Sagar wherein hundreds of police officials pass out each year. The institutes have specific and specialized training courses to shape the police officers".

The Chattarpur Range which Vivek Raj supervises now shares border with Uttar Pradesh, an escape route for criminals after committing crime in MP.

Vivek Raj said, "The crime here is more compared to other districts of MP. Though the arms trafficking through this route is not high but this area witnessed high number of firing incidents which were recently brought under control.  The criminals try to take use this route to escape into UP or those from UP into MP however with better policing techniques, we have busted those hotspots as well".

Chattarpur Range of MP Police also looks after Panna Tiger Reserve, Khajuraho Temple and other tourists spots which are visited across the country. The officer stated that the policing at tourist spots requires different approach.

Vivek Raj had grabbed attention in newspapers of MP when he cycled at night during the the first lockdown to check on the police arrangements and implementation of the Covid rules.

Talking about his recent fitness achievement, Vivek Raj said that it was a long journey.

He expressed, "I was bulky since childhood and weighed 88 kgs in Class 8th. At the police academy, I was weighing 134 kgs and during the training I had brought it down to 104kgs. However, due to postings in conflict affected areas, my schedule got erratic and I regained weight to 138kgs".

At that point, Vivek Raj had thought that he will never lose weight. However, during a walk with his officer in Jharkhand during a election duty, he realised that walking can do wonders for him.

He added, "It was a normal walk from Circuit House to road outside and then I began walking regularly. I started using an app 'Stepsetgo' and monitored my walks. I couldn't even complete 25000 steps in one go so started going day and night. I increased it to a total of 50000 steps a day. Now I walk 20000 steps to maintain the fitness level".

Vivek Raj who lost 43kgs, believes in quantifying the food and drink intake throughout the day. His dinner depends on the requirement of nutrition and calories he has in hand to consume for the day. He neither killed his cravings for favourite food during his weight loss nor does he know. He eats everything from puri to pulao, idli to vada and chocolates to cakes but under moderations and strict self watch.

Vivek Raj is a graduate in electronics and telecommunication engineering. 

Asking on what inspired him to get into civil services, he said, "One day I heard my parents telling each other that how they wished their son could become IAS/IPS. The eavesdropping on that helped me shape my goal of an IPS officer".

Vivek Raj is an avid photographer and shares his work regularly on Instagram. His other hobbies include cycling, trekking, running and cricket, football in sports.

The new fitter Vivek Raj is ready to use his fitness again at challenging postings if given and this time with more vigour and strength.