Move is aimed at addressing the issue of falling number of IAS officers in central government departments.
New Delhi: The IAS Association is planning to recommend compulsory central deputation for officers, the newly appointed president of the IAS body has said.
The move is aimed at addressing the issue of falling number of IAS officers in central government departments.
The problem is partly caused by what is seen as reluctance among IAS officers in states to move to Delhi fearing extensive scrutiny by the Modi government.
In an interview to ThePrint, president of the association Rakesh Srivastava said the IAS body is looking at ways to increase the number of IAS officers on central deputation.
Also read: Cosy with CBI officials, caterer of Delhi club helped IAS, IRS officers stash loot
“We haven’t come up with a definite plan yet, but we are considering making it compulsory for IAS officers to serve in the central government,” said Srivastava, who is currently serving as the secretary in the women and child development ministry.
“This can particularly be done for younger officers who have young children and easily be posted at the Centre,” he added.
Srivastava, who was appointed president of the IAS Association last week, is a 1981 batch officer of the Rajasthan cadre.
Asked if the association was cognizant of the rise in empanelment and appointments of officers from other services in the central government, Srivastava said, “We actually welcome that opportunities are being given to other services, but we have to come up with a way to encourage our own service.”
There are states like Maharashtra, Punjab, Haryana, etc. which send very few officers for central deputation, he said. “We will ask the states to complete their respective limits under the Central Deputation Reserve (CDR), so that at least they meet the obligations for central deputation that they are supposed to,” he said.
Emphasising that officers only gain by serving at the Centre, Srivastava said, “Why should IAS officers lag behind in this regard?”
The CDR determines the limit up to which officers could be sent for deputation to the government of India.
Also read: The IAS has thinned at the top of the bureaucracy under the Modi government
Last year, the Central government had written to all states asking them to spare more officers for central deputation in a bid to address the shortage of IAS officers at the middle level.
Last month, ThePrint had reported that the Central government has empanelled fewer IAS officers each year since 2015. For example, just 11 IAS officers had been empanelled by the government until July this year for joint secretary posts, down from 87 officers in 2014, even as empanelments from other services shot up considerably.
“We cannot say anything against the government’s policy on empanelment. However, within the framework of that policy, we will try to increase our numbers,” Srivastava said.