Recently, the Haryana government brought a coveted reform with regards to the nomination of non-state civil services to All India Services. Non-state civil services (SCS) officers in Haryana will now have to take a written examination to get appointed to the Indian Administrative Services (IAS). Until now, non-SCS officers in Haryana were appointed to the IAS based on their ability and service record, perceived as a rather subjective criterion.

Haryana’s non-scs officers take written exam for IAS

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Facts in Brief:

  • The Haryana Public Service Commission (HPSC) will now hold a written examination for the non-SCS applicants. Based on the marks obtained by the candidates in the written examination, the HPSC will prepare a merit list and recommend names to the state government for onward submission to the Union Public Service Commission.
  • The names of qualified candidates will not exceed five times the number of vacancies. The personnel department will also submit details of the annual confidential record of the candidates to the UPSC.
  • The three-hour written examination will have 100 multiple-choice questions with five options. The exam will be of 500 marks and for every wrong answer, 25% marks assigned to the question shall be deducted.

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Legal Standpoint:

IAS (Appointment by Selection) Regulations, 1997

Regulation 4, 5, 6 & 7

4. State Government to send proposals for consideration of the Committee:-

  1. The State Government shall consider the case of a person not belonging to the State Civil Service but serving in connection with the affairs of the State who,

    1. is of outstanding merit and ability; and
    2. holds a Gazetted post in a substantive capacity; and
  • has completed not less than 8 years of continuous service under the State Government on the first day of January of the year in which his case is being considered in any post which has been declared equivalent to the post of Deputy Collector in the State Civil Service and propose the person for consideration of the Committee. The number of persons proposed for consideration of the Committee shall not exceed five times the number of vacancies proposed to be filled during the year:

Provided that the State Government shall not consider the case of a person who has attained the age of 54 years on the first day of January of the year in which the decision is taken to propose the names for the consideration of the Committee.

Provided also that the State Government shall not consider the case of a person who, having been included in an earlier Select List, has not been appointed by the Central Government in accordance with the provisions of regulation 9 of these regulations.

5. Preparation of a list of suitable officers by the Committee:-

The Committee shall meet every year to consider the proposal of the State Government made under regulation 4 and recommend the names of the persons, not exceeding the number of vacancies to be filled under regulation 3, for appointment to the service. The suitability of a person for appointment to the service shall be determined by scrutiny of service records and personal interview:-

Provided that no meeting of the Committee shall be held and no list for the year in question shall be prepared, when

  1. there are no substantive vacancies as on the first day of January of the year in the posts available for recruitment of persons under sub-rule (2) to rule 8 read with proviso to sub-rule (1) to rule 9 of the recruitment rules; or
  2. the Central Government in consultation with the State Government decides that no recruitment shall be made during the year to the substantive vacancies as on the first day of January of the year in the posts available for recruitment under sub-rule (2) to rule 8 read with proviso to sub-rule (1) to rule 9 of the recruitment rules; or
  • the Commission, either on its own or on a proposal made by the Central Government or the State Government, considers that it is not practicable to hold a meeting of the Committee during the year, in the facts and circumstances of each case.

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Explanation: In case of Joint Cadres, a separate Select List shall be prepared in respect of each constituent having a State Civil Service.

6.Consultation with the Commission:-

  1. The recommendations of the Committee made under regulation 5 shall be placed before the State Government concerned which shall forward the same to the Commission for approval along with

    1. the confidential records of the officer concerned; and
    2. the observations, if any, of the State Government and the recommendations of the Committee.
  2. The State Government shall also forward the recommendations of the Committee and its observations, if any, to the Central Government. The Central Government shall forward their observations, if any, on the recommendations of the Committee, to the Commission.

7. Preparation of Select List by the Commission:-

  1. The Commission shall consider the list prepared by the Committee, the observations, if any, of the Central Government and the State Government concerned on the recommendations of the Committee and approve the list subject to the provisions of sub-regulation (2) which shall be termed as a Select List.
  2. If the Commission considers if necessary to make any amendment in the list, it shall consult the Central Government and the State Government concerned and after taking into account the comments, if any, of the Central Government and the State Government concerned, may approve the list which such amendments, if any, as are in its opinion, just and proper

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Analysis:

The step taken by the Haryana government is a progressive reform. Merit-based selection for nomination will ensure an effective and efficient system of governance. It will not bring and enhance transparency in the nomination process but also end the nepotism and corruption which is prevalent in such processes. Furthermore, a transparent manner without any recommendations will further enhance the faith of people in the state government.

Nepotism and corruption in the nomination of state civil servants by the state government to UPSC is known fact. That is the reason that, in 2013, there was a proposal by UPSC that it will conduct written examination and interview of those nominated by states before their appointment to All India Services. It was proposed that the selection to IAS, IPS, and IFoS from states’ services would be made through a 1000 marks four-stage process including a written exam and interview. The move had come on the recommendation of the Administrative Reforms Commission and the UPSC which suggested changes in the existing system. However, such a proposal is not followed by the ministry now. Still, the selection is based on recommendations and nominated list sent by the state government. Thus, as state government nomination carries a lot of weight in the selection process, there must be transparency in the process.

Fulfilling the same long-sought reform, the Haryana government announced merit-based examination before nomination. A free and fair selection process will enable the Haryana government to select good meritorious candidates who would perform their duties judiciously and lead to a better system of administration and governance.

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For case specific advice consults with service Law subject matter expert and gets professional Legal advice from Top High Court Service lawyer in Chandigarh Panchkula Mohali. Kharar Derabassi Zirakpur

This post is written by Gourav Kathuria

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