Imphal, Jan 4: Former Union home secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla was on Friday sworn in as the 19th Governor of Manipur at the Raj Bhavan in Imphal, a month after President Droupadi Murmu appointed him to the constitutional post.
Bhalla was administered the oath of office by Chief Justice of the High Court of Manipur, Justice D Krishnakumar.
Bhalla replaced Assam Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya, who was holding the additional charge of Manipur.
Bhalla, who has the rare distinction of serving as the Union home secretary for the longest time, completed his five-year tenure in August last year.
He also inspected the guard of honour by Manipur Rifles personnel.
Bhalla is a 1984-batch retired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Assam-Meghalaya cadre. Bhalla hails from Punjab’s Jalandhar.
The swearing-in ceremony was attended by Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh, Assembly Speaker Th Stayabrata, former Chief Minister Ibobi Singh, top-ranked Manipur cop Rajiv Singh, state cabinet ministers, MLAs and other high ranking officers.
