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| Centre to fix tenure of IAS officers | | |
NEW DELHI, MAY 31
In a bid to revamp the public Administration System, the Centre would soon be coming out with a policy of fixing the tenure of IAS officers in states for two years, ignoring strong opposition expressed by some states to the same.
The Department of Personnel today informed the states that the order would be implemented but would not, in any way, affect or infringe upon inherent powers of state governments, official sources said here.
The fixed tenure would not be applicable to such officers who are to retire, go on promotion, training or leave, the sources said.
The decision was conveyed to the states during a high-level meeting here chaired by Department of Personnel and Training Secretary Satyananda Mishra and attended by Chief Secretaries and senior officials from states.
The meeting was called here by the DoPT to discuss the fixed tenure for IAS officers to save honest officers from mass transfer of officials that often come with change of guard in states and constitute committees for appointments of Chief Secretary, Director General of Police and Chief Principle Conservator besides fixing their tenure.
The meeting was also called for a discussion on the new Appraisal Forms and constitution of State Vigilance Bureau on the lines of Central Vigilance Bureau.
During the meeting, states, including Madhya Pradesh, vehemently opposed constitution of vigilance bureau in the state saying it had enough mechanism to deal with corruption.
On fixing the tenure for IAS officers, some states opposed it while others favoured inclusion of certain safeguards to ensure that the states' inherent powers to transfer are not infringed on.
Principal Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir Khursheed Ganai informed the meeting that state was in prinple in agreement with a two-year tenure for an IAS officer but subject to conditions.
"We have given our opinion to the Department of Personnel and Training that the state was not averse for a two-year tenure of an IAS officer subject to some conditionalities like the state government is free to transfer any officer, holding any post, even before completion of the tenure as per the decision of the Chief Minister or the state cabinet.
The second condition was that the state government could transfer any IAS officer if any discplinary action or an inquiry was initiated against him or her and the third condition was that if the officer was needed to be shifted in public interest, he said.
Ganai also pointed out at the meeting that there should be an uniformity in implementing the fixed tenure policy in the entire country.
On the issue of filing the Annual Appraisal form for the All India Service officials, various states pointed out that it was cumbersome and time-consuming.
But the DoPT said the form was already in ciculation and needed to be filled. However, it asked the states to give their opinions which could be analysed for next year, the sources privy to the meeting said.
On the issue of the constituting committees for appointment of Director Generals of Police and Chief Secretaries, the states favoured that powers for selection of officers for such posts should remain with the state cabinet only.
The Centre had called the meeting to ensure it could present an Action Taken report before the Supreme Court which had favoured for such a move.
The Centre has already constituted a Committee on National Security and Central Police Personnel Welfare for selection and placement of heads of Central Police Organisations (CPOs) which includes the National security Advisor, Cabinet Secretary, Union Home Secretary and Intelligence Bureau Director as its members.
The DoPT also asked all the states to give their views on the Public Services Bill which is to be tabled in the monsoon session of Parliament.
The government, in prinple, has accepted a long-standing demand of civil servants for a minimum fixed tenure besides initiating the process of accelerated empanelment of IAS officers at the levels of Joint Secretary and Additional Secretary so as to reduce the waiting period from 22 years to 19 years.
The goverment also suggested performance-linked rewards for civil servants and cadre reviews for a number of services to enhance the motivation of the officers and also for improving promotion prospects.
An incentive package is being worked out for officers serving in the Northeast and they will be entitled to annual home travel concession by air. The government would also reimburse the cost of education of their children.
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