New Delhi: The Narendra Modi government is all set to expand the lateral entry of experts into the civil service through its think tank NITI Aayog.
According to highly-placed officials, the government plans to advertise about 50 positions in NITI Aayog at different levels, including directors, joint secretaries, additional secretaries, etc.
While NITI Aayog has hired consultants on contracts until now, the new posts would be at par with regular government servants, a senior official in the government said.
“We have identified the areas in which we want to hire people — there are 54 positions out of a total of 516 for which we will recruit laterally,” the official said.
“The advertisements for the posts should be out by June or July. NITI Aayog is in the process of deciding how many posts and what job profiles should be advertised.”
These posts are recognised as ‘flexi-pool posts’, for which the NITI Aayog usually hires consultants as needed. However, in a break from the past, it will now hire individuals who will have the same rank, status, responsibilities and accountability as regular civil servants.
“It is one of the main functions of NITI Aayog to coordinate with other ministries for policy-making… But a lot of ministries would not take communications from consultants seriously. So the new recruits will have the same designations as regular IAS officers,” the official said.
Also read: UPSC has shortlisted lateral entry aspirants, but no one knows when they’ll be appointed
Five-year appointment
Recruiting fresh talent to introduce domain expertise as well as address massive vacancies in the civil service has been part of the Modi government’s core agenda. Last year, in its previous tenure, the government had announced that it would recruit domain experts into 10 central ministries at the rank of joint secretary.
Like the terms of that scheme, the new set of recruits will be appointed for a period of five years — with their appointment to be re-evaluated after three years.
However, on completion of their service in the government, these lateral recruits would not be required to serve any cooling-off period.
“There are enough checks and balances within the government to ensure there is no conflict of interest… Besides, adding a cooling-off period would just prevent talented people from coming into the government in the first place,” the official said.
Also read: Lateral entry into bureaucracy may not be the panacea for the ills
All approvals in place
According to officials, the proposal had already been approved by the Modi government in its previous term, and all the necessary approvals from the Prime Minister’s Office, the Union Public Service Commission and the Department of Personnel and Training have already been taken.
“UPSC has approved the terms of recruitment for these individuals,” another official said.
I really appreciate the views of B.K. Jha ji in stating that “”this can be of revolutionary and visionary concept to remove the STEEL FRAME concept of the BRITISH Raj”” because the high ego of IAS officer with the British Raj mentality to kill and control other services like IFS,IPS, Army, IES, IRS, IP&TS, Indian Engineering Service etc etc mainly responsible for the backwardness of this Country. British had already left 72 years and colonial culture of Babus with very high colonial ego is still continuing to kill all other central services and this should be stopped. Infact specialised ministries should have specialised people as Secretary and additional Secretary. We can’t just understand why IAS is allowed to be Secretaries if all central ministries. We also can’t understand why Department of Personnel and Training have only IAS officers to decide the fate of other central services. There is total frustration in other central services of big brother big boss attitude of IAS officer and if India wants to develop IAS wings have to be clipped and then only India will become a super power. Let us remember that wherever there is less RED TAPISM development is faster and instead of promoting British Raj style of IAS officers we should now promote CORPORATE culture.
Welcome move by our Beloved PM, but what and how the selection would be done as log of gapbetween demand and supply of professionals in our country. The. Who will ensure the transperency in process.
These will be square pegs in round holes, with no idea how administration runs in India. Big notions, little practice.
Let Job profile of civil servant , selection/election process,Civil services and institution like UPSC needs to be reviewed in real terms against some vital indicators including poverty alleviation, health care and human development index in the country (narrowing down till district and block level), natural resource conservation and creation of sense of nationality within citizen. Cost and benefit analysis seems unfavorable. Return on investment on public services seems on adverse side. To equate efficiency and inefficiency of civil servants, the later side is It is happy to note that at least some rational intervention has been came out which match the need of hour. I can not forget the sense of luxury and leisure of our public servant who were celebrating the Kalahandi draught where people were dying.
This can be a revolutionary visionary move to break steel frame concept of British Raj. The essential is two organise two different committees one have to research on the contribution of civil services to nation and other to research damage done by the group to the nation or the performance nedded but not performed. The objective evaluation would be done based on the report. Some worthy suggestion is that criteria of civil services (many IAS) should be as follows:
1. Lateral Entry with some modification in selection
2. Qualifying based criteria Note for UPSC
The qualifying criteria would be as follows:
Selection of one IAS for each and every Indian Gram Panchyat as Panchayt Sewaks.
Compulsory 8 years services as Panchyat Sewak after 1st time selection & compusory 8 months training in Public Admistration
Compulsory 2 years services at Block level
Annual performance evaluation/citizen feed back and coperative chart perpearation within district
Exam and interview based on their contribution to GP and Block
Note: The IAS district job should be contractual (maximum up to 5 years subject to one renewal )
There should be selection not rejection process and Panchayat entry would be best fit for selection process
UPSC be closed
We are obliged to PM for revolutionary step to recruit professionals from all sectors as IAS officers on lateral basis by avoiding time consuming process of UPSC exams.Now UPSC us totally islamised by congress and no Hindu gets selected .Islamic students are selected on fraud false fake marking
Welcome move Mr PM.. MANY PROFESSIONALLY QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS WHO MAY BE JOBLESS DUE TO RECESSION WILL BENEFIT , WILL GET AN OPPORTUNITY TO SERVE THE GOVT… THE GOVT GETS SENIOR PROFESSIONALS TO RUN THE GOVT..
What about those consultant s who gave their golden five years to the department. Young talent waste due to this.
One remains a little sceptical about the utility of Niti Aayog. Just read the column on how Africa is emerging as a promising manufacturing hub. If the economy is becalmed, what has the Niti Aayog been doing all this while …
Nothing