Mission Mode: 1,300 IAS and 505 IPS Posts Vacant in the Country; Government Outlines Its 'Mission Mode' Plan..

UPSC Recruitment News: Reports of a severe shortage of IAS and IPS officers—considered the backbone of India's administrative and security apparatus—have raised questions regarding the governance system. Official data presented in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday has come as a shock to everyone. According to the statistics, hundreds of posts within the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and the Indian Police Service (IPS) currently lie vacant across the country.

Where is the Shortage Most Acute?
In a written response submitted to Parliament on Wednesday, Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh stated that out of a total of 6,877 sanctioned posts in the IAS, officers are currently deployed in 5,577 positions. He added that against the 5,099 sanctioned posts in the IPS, 4,594 officers are currently in position.

Singh further explained that IAS posts are filled in accordance with the reservation guidelines issued by the government. He stated, "Since 2012, a total of 180 candidates have been recruited into the IAS annually through the Civil Services Examination, of which 4 percent of the seats are reserved for candidates with benchmark disabilities (PwBD)."

He further noted that the process of allocating candidates through the Civil Services Examination (CSE), conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), is an ongoing and continuous one. Jitendra Singh added that vacancies are assessed on a regular basis, and all advertised IAS vacancies are filled while strictly adhering to reservation norms.

Are There Any Backlog Vacancies?

Currently, there are no backlog vacancies within the Indian Administrative Service. Furthermore, Singh stated that as of January 1, 2025, there are no backlog reserved posts in the Indian Police Service.

Appointments by Category
The Minister informed that over the past five years, 245 candidates from the Other Backward Classes (OBC), 135 from the Scheduled Castes (SC), and 67 from the Scheduled Tribes (ST) have been appointed to the IAS. Similarly, during this same period (from CSE 2020 to CSE 2024), 255 individuals from the OBC category, 141 from SC, and 71 from ST have been appointed to the IPS.

Vacancies in the IFoS

In a separate response, the Minister stated that there are currently 1,029 vacant posts for Indian Forest Service (IFoS) officers, against a sanctioned strength of 3,193.

The Minister further added, "Recruitment is a continuous process, and vacancies in these services are filled on a year-to-year basis, taking into account the administrative requirements of the states, as well as the promotion prospects and career development opportunities available to the officers."

Singh also pointed out that detailed information regarding sanctioned posts, personnel in position, and vacancies across various Ministries and Departments of the Central Government is available in the annual report of the Pay Research Unit under the Department of Expenditure, which is publicly accessible.

In another response, he stated, "Maintaining detailed information regarding vacancies is the responsibility of the respective Cadre Controlling Authorities/Ministries/Departments."

Singh was asked whether the government had conducted any preliminary study regarding the estimated figures for sanctioned, in-position, and vacant posts across all Central Government Ministries and Departments.

Government in Mission Mode: Relying on Employment Fairs

He noted that the existence of vacancies in various Ministries/Departments—and the process of filling them—is a continuous one. Singh further added that instructions have been issued to the Ministries/Departments from time to time to fill vacant posts within a stipulated timeframe. Vacancies within the Central Government are currently being filled under a 'Mission Mode' approach. In this context, since October 2022, during the 'National Employment Fairs' (Rozgar Melas) organized to date, appointment letters have been distributed to hundreds of thousands of recommended or selected candidates.

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