Vattavayalil Joseph Thomas (30 November 1941 – 10 February 2018), known simply as Joseph Thomas in police and political circles, was an officer of

Indian Police Service The Indian Police Service ( IPS) is a civil service under the All India Services. It replaced the Indian Imperial Police in 1948, a year after India became independent from the British Raj. Along with the Indian Administrative Service (IAS ...

, who served as the Director General of

Kerala Police The Kerala Police is the law enforcement agency for the Indian state of Kerala. Kerala Police has its headquarters in Thiruvananthapuram, the state capital. The motto of the force is "Mridhu Bhave Dhrida Kruthye" which means "Soft in Temperamen ...

Personal life

V. Joseph Thomas was born to V. J. Joseph, Vattavayalil House and Aleykutty Joseph, Pamblani House at

Palai Pallai ( ta, பளை, si, පල්ලෙයි), also spelt Palai, is a small town in the Kilinochchi District, Northern Province, Sri Lanka. It is located near the coast on the northern peninsula, approximately south-east of Jaffna. ...

Kottayam District Kottayam (), is one of 14 districts in the Indian state of Kerala. Kottayam district comprises six municipal towns: Kottayam, Changanassery, Pala, Erattupetta, Ettumanoor, and Vaikom. It is the only district in Kerala that neither borders the ...

, Kerala. He married Mariamma Thomas and had one daughter. He retired from the police force in November 2001 and lived in

Cochin Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...

, Kerala. He served as a patron at several organisations. His younger brother,

V. J. Kurian Vattavayalil Joseph Kurian was the Additional Chief Secretary to the Government of Kerala in India was the Managing Director of Cochin International Airport. He belongs to the 1983 batch of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Kerala cadre ...

was the Additional

Chief Secretary (India) The Chief Secretary is the top-most executive official and senior-most civil servant of the state government. The Chief Secretary is the ''ex-officio'' head of the state Civil Services Board, the State Secretariat, the state cadre Indian Admini ...

to the Government of Kerala and is currently the managing director of

Cochin International Airport Cochin International Airport is an International airport serving the city of Kochi, in the state of Kerala, India. Located at Nedumbassery, about northeast of the city centre, Cochin International Airport is first of its kind which is develo ...

Limited.

Education

Joseph Thomas did his schooling in

St. Thomas College, Palai St. Thomas College, Pala is a government aided college of higher education located in Pala town, Kerala, India. It was founded on 7 August 1950 by the Syro-Malabar Catholic Eparchy of Palai. The college is affiliated to Mahatma Gandhi Unive ...

. Soon after graduating from Government Law College, Thiruvananthapuram, he decided to join the Indian Armed Forces. He was trained at the Indian Military Academy before joining the

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...

Career

Joseph Thomas joined the Indian Army in early 1964 at the age of 22 and saw action in the

Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 or the Second Kashmir War was a culmination of skirmishes that took place between April 1965 and September 1965 between Pakistan and India. The conflict began following Pakistan's Operation Gibraltar, which was d ...

. In early September 1965, he successfully captained his group of men deep into enemy territory during the height of the war. After a few years of service in the

, he passed the Indian Civil Services Examination in 1969 and joined the

, being the only native from Kerala in that batch of officers. His first posting was as the

Assistant Superintendent of Police Assistant superintendent, or assistant superintendent of police (ASP), is a rank that was used by police forces in the British Empire and is still used in many police forces in the Commonwealth. It was usually the lowest rank that could be held b ...

Palakkad Palakkad (), formerly known as Palghat, historically known as Palakkattussery is a city and municipality in the Indian state of Kerala. It is the administrative headquarters of the Palakkad District. Palakkad is most densely populated municipal ...

district. He also served as Superintendent of Police,

Kozhikode Kozhikode (), also known in English as Calicut, is a city along the Malabar Coast in the state of Kerala in India. It has a corporation limit population of 609,224 and a metropolitan population of more than 2 million, making it the second la ...

, Commissioner of Police,

Trivandrum Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

, Commissioner of Police,

, Inspector General of Police, Headquarters,

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

and Director General of Police, Vigilance

. At the time of retirement, he served as the Director of the Vigilance and Anti Corruption Bureau. He also served as the founding managing director at the Kerala Police Housing and Construction Corporation Ltd. Joseph Thomas is best remembered by the city of

for being the brain behind the conception, building and inauguration of the

Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium (Kochi) The Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium, locally known as Kaloor Stadium, is a multi-purpose stadium in Kochi, Kerala, India. The stadium has a capacity of 60,000 spectators. For Indian Super League matches it is restricted to 39,000. The ...

which was completed in 1996 ahead of schedule. This he accomplished while serving as the Chairman of the

Greater Cochin Development Authority Greater Cochin Development Authority (GCDA) is the statutory body overseeing the development of the city of Kochi in the state of Kerala, India. Headquartered at Kadavanthra, GCDA oversees the development of the major part of Greater Cochin ar ...

and was also decorated by the President of India for this effort. Another project he is remembered for is the beautification of the

Marine Drive, Kochi Marine Drive is a picturesque promenade in Kochi, India. It is built facing the backwaters, and is a popular hangout for the local populace. Despite its name, no vehicles are allowed on the walkway. Marine Drive is also an economically thriving ...

into an iconic walkway and also his efforts to develop the Perandoor Canal along the lines of the Grand Canal (Venice). Joseph Thomas also served as the patron of the Kerala State Athletics Association. He also served as a patron at

Vidyodaya School Vidyodaya School is a private college-preparatory combined-grades school located in Thevakkal, Kochi, India. It provides comprehensive school education from lower primary to grade 12. About Established in 1990-91 the school conducts classes fr ...

, Cochin, Kerala. Until his demise, he was involved in various projects in the city of Cochin and spoke at public events. He was also actively involved in humanitarian and charitable causes.

References

External links

Kerala Police History

UPSC Official WebsiteVattavayalil Family Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, V. Joseph Indian police chiefs Malayali people People from Pala, Kerala 1941 births 2018 deaths Civil Servants from Kerala Indian Christians Indian Police Service officers Indian civil servants All India Services Indian government officials

Personal life

Education

Career

See also

References

External links