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CIVIL SERVICES IN INDIA
Overview o Running the administration of a vast and diverse
country requires efficient management of natural, economic and
human resources. This is the primary responsibility of the civil
services
o Civil Services in India originated in the eighteenth century
under the rule of the East India Company
o Civil services in India comprise three types of services
o All India Services
o Central Civil Services Group A
o Central Civil Services Group B
o State Civil Services
o According to the Constitution, more Civil Services can be set
up by the Rajya Sabha with a 2/3rd majority
vote. This applies to All India and Central Services, while the
State Services can be constituted by similar act of
state legislatures. The Indian Forest Service and the Indian
Foreign Service were set up in this fashion
Civil Services under British rule o The civil services were
first constituted under the East India Company as the Honourable
East India Company
Civil Servants (HEICS)
o At this stage there were two groups of civil servants:
covenanted (who entered into covenants with the Company)
and theuncovenanted. The covenanted civil servants occupied
higher positions in the hierarchy while the
uncovenanted occupied lower levels
o This service evolved to become the Indian Civil Service (ICS),
which later became the Indian Administrative
Service (IAS) after Independence
o The Public Service Commission 1886-1887 (Aitchison
Commission), was constituted to guide the evolution of
the civil service. The recommendations of the Aitchison
Commission included
o Two-tier classification of covenanted/uncovenanted to be
replaced by three tier classification Imperial Civil
Service, Provincial Civil Service and Subordinate Civil
Service
o Maximum age of entry to be 23 years
o Statutory system of recruitment to be abolished
o Competitive exam should not be held simultaneously in England
and India
o Certain percentage of posts in the Imperial Civil Service to
be filled by promotion from Provincial Civil
Services
o The basic pattern of the cadre system in the civil service was
established by the Aitchison Commission
o In 1912, the Islington Commission was appointed, however its
recommendations were not considered
o By 1934, the system had evolved to consist of seven All India
Services
o The first Indian to rank first in the ICS examination was
Gurusaday Dutt in 1905
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All India Services o The All India Services are those civil
services that serve all of India, under both the Union Government
and the
state governments
o There are three All India Services:
o Indian Administrative Service (IAS)
o Indian Police Service (IPS)
o Indian Forest Service (IFS)
o The officers of the All India Services are recruited and
trained by the Union Government, but work under the Centre
as well as the states
o Officers of the All India Services are organised into cadres.
24 states have their own cadres. There are also three
joint cadres:
o Assam-Meghalaya cadre
o Manipur-Tripura cadre
o Arunchal Pradesh-Goa-Mizoram-Union Territories (AGMUT)
cadre
Central Civil Services o Central Civil Services function under
the Central government
o The Central services are categorised into two groups: Group A
and Group B
o There are more than 30 Central Services Group A. Prominent
services in the Central Civil Services Group A
include
o Indian Foreign Service (IFS)
o Indian Revenue Service (IRS)
o Indian Postal Service
o Indian Economic Service
o Indian Audits and Accounts Service (IA&AS)
o Military Engineering Service
o Survey of India Service
o Central Secretariat Service
o The Central Civil Service Group B consists of three
services
o Defence Secretariat Service
o Union Territories Administrative Service
o Union Territories Police Service
State Civil Services o Each state has its own civil service
o State level civil services include
o State Civil/Administrative Service
o State Police Service
o State Forest Service
o Public Works Department
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UNION PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION (UPSC) o The UPSC is a
constitutional body authorised to conduct exams for appointment to
the civil services. It was
established under Part XIV of the Constitution
o The Constitution provides for a Public Service Commission for
the Union and a Public Service Commission for
every state
o The first Public Service Commission was set up in 1926, with
the aim of indigenising the civil services
o The Government of India Act 1935 provided for the
establishment of a Federal Public Service Commission
and Provincial Public Service Commissions
Membership to the Commission
o The Chairman and other members of the UPSC are appointed by
the President of India
o At least half the members are civil servants with at least 10
years experience in Central or state services
o The tenure of each member is six years or age 65, whichever is
earlier
o Members of the UPSC can be removed by the President on charges
of misbehaviour, if these charges are upheld
by the Supreme Court
Functions of the UPSC
o Recruitment to services and posts under the Union Government
through conduct of competitive exams
o Recruitment to services and posts under the Union Government
by direct selection. This type of recruitment
is done to fill immediate/irregular job vacancies.
o Advice on the suitability of officers for appointment,
promotion and transfer
o Advice the government on all matters relating to recruitment
to various posts and services
o Handle disciplinary cases related to different civil
services
