Former CBI and CRPF Chief Dr. Trinath Mishra Dies in New Delhi at 84
The Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy (SVPNPA), Hyderabad, has mourned the death of Dr. Trinath Mishra, IPS (Retd.), a 1965-batch officer of the Uttar Pradesh cadre who served as Director of the Academy from 1996 to 1997 and later headed both the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).
Dr. Mishra died on the morning of 1 October 2026 in New Delhi. Local reports from Simdega said he passed away at about 5 a.m. at his residence in the capital. He was 84. In an official message issued the same day, the CRPF said he had “departed for his heavenly abode this morning” and described him as a dedicated officer whose service to the nation would be remembered.
On 2 October, the Academy issued its own condolence message, saying: “SVPNPA mourns the passing of Dr. Trinath Mishra, IPS (Retd.), (UP:1965), Director of the Academy from 1996 to 1997. He later led the CRPF and the CBI. The Academy remembers his service and extends deepest condolences to his family.”
Career
Dr. Mishra belonged to Kurdeg in Simdega district, now in Jharkhand. He was among the first batch of Netarhat Residential School, completed his BA from Patna University, and later obtained an MA and a PhD from Rohilkhand University.
He joined the Indian Police Service in 1965 and served for about 37 years. In Uttar Pradesh, he served as Senior Superintendent of Police in Varanasi and Meerut and was associated with security arrangements for the Mahakumbh at Allahabad. Early in his career, he also served in districts then affected by dacoity. Later, he held charge as Director General of Police, Manipur, and served with the Indo-Tibetan Border Police.
In the early 1990s, he served as Director of the Special Protection Group. After his tenure at SVPNPA in 1996-97, he became Special Director in the CBI and later took over as the agency’s head on an ad hoc basis from 1 April 1998, after D. R. Karthikeyan retired. He subsequently led the CRPF as Director General from 31 July 2000 to 31 December 2002, and also held additional charge of the Central Industrial Security Force during that period.
Dr. Mishra was decorated with the President’s Police Medal and the Police Medal for Gallantry, and received the Govind Ballabh Pant Award. He also wrote on policing and other subjects, including the book First Charge: Handbook for Police Officers.
Tributes
The CRPF held a condolence meeting at its Force Headquarters on 1 October, led by Director General Gyanendra Pratap Singh. The CISF and the Indian Police Service (Central) Association also issued condolence messages, recalling his leadership of institutions central to internal security and criminal investigation.
Writing in The Indian Express on 5 October, Abhinav Kumar, IPS, described Dr. Mishra as an officer whose name was spoken with respect for his integrity, and said that few of his generation had commanded so many of the institutions that hold the state together.
SVPNPA said it remembered his service as Director and extended its deepest condolences to the bereaved family.
