Observations regarding transfers and postings of civil servants (India)

The National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution made the following observations regarding transfers and postings of civil servants:

“Arbitrary and questionable methods of appointments, promotions and transfers of officers by political superiors also led to corrosion of the moral basis of its independence. It has strengthened the temptation in services to collusive practices with politicians to avoid the inconvenience of transfers and to gain advantages by ingratiating themselves to political masters.

They would do the politicians’ biddings rather than adhere to rules. Lest the situation becomes more vicious, it is necessary that a better arrangement be conceived under the Constitution. The question of appointments, transfers and placements is not to be left to the discretion of the politicians or administrative bosses but be entrusted to independent and autonomous boards. The Commission, therefore, recommends that the questions of personnel policy including placements, promotions, transfers and fast-track advancements on the basis of forward-looking career management policies and techniques should be managed by autonomous Personnel Boards for assisting the high level political authorities in making key decisions.

Such civil service boards should constituted under statutory provisions. They should be expected to function like the UPSC. Repute management experts from institutes of management, well known for their excellence, should be inducting into these boards to provide a broad based pool of expertise.

The principle is not to take politics out personnel policy but to make knowledge and information institutionally available to the political decision makers on the basis of appropriate parliamentary legislation under Article 309.

The sanctity parliamentary legislation under Article 309 is needed to counteract the publicly known trends of the of unhealthy and destabilizing influences in the management of public services in general and high civil services in particular.”

Arbitrary and motivated transfers of government servants which are not in public interest and go governance have become a matter of great concern particularly in some States although the position i^ somewhat better at the Union Government level.

The Union Government has initiated several measures in order to ensure security of tenure to servants.

The Rules governing the All India Services have been amended and provision made for fixation of tenures of posts encadred with the AIS. For example, the Indian Administrative Service (Cadre Rules, 1955, have been amended and a new clause inserted:

“7(c) (i) The Central Government, in consultation with the State Government or State Governments corned, may determine the tenure of all or any of the cadre posts specified for the State concerned in item of the Schedule to the Indian Administrative Service (Fixation of Cadre Strength) Relation, 1955.

280 (ii) A cadre officer, appointed to any post for which the tenure has been so determined, shall hold tin minimum tenure as prescribed except in the event of promotion, retirement, deputation outside tin State or training exceeding two months,

(iii) An officer may be transferred before the minimum prescribed tenure only on the recommend at of a Committee on Minimum Tenure as specified in the Schedule annexed to these rules.”

The tenure of several posts has been notified accordingly for many States. The Commission h tried to address this issue by suggesting a mechanism for posting of officers and for fixation of tenure The Commission would like to reiterate that the tenure of all posts above a certain level should be fixing in Government of India by making a provision in the new civil services law. State Governments shout also take similar steps.