Law and You > Administrative Law > Indian Civil Services
The Civil service is the entity that is charged with the responsibility of carrying out government policies, providing services to the public and keeping the machinery of government running. A government official or functionary is involved in public administration or government through either election, selection or employment. A bureaucrat or civil servant is a member of the bureaucracy. In this article, we shall know about Indian Civil Services and its features.
The Indian Civil services are divided into three categories. First, the State services where each State has its own administrative service, normally headed by the Chief Secretary to the State government. At this level, there are also various technical, secretarial and local government services. Second, there are the Central services, more than fifty in number, which include the Indian Foreign Service, the Central Secretarial Service, the Postal Service, and the Indian Revenue Service. Finally, the important All-India services include the Indian Administrative Service, the Indian Police Service, and the Indian Foreign Service. The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) is responsible for the recruitment and service conditions of civil servants in India.
According to the German sociologist Max Weber the characteristics of a civil servant are as follows:
- He is personally free and appointed to his position on the basis of conduct.
- He exercises the authority delegated to him in accordance with impersonal rules, and his loyalty is enlisted on behalf of the faithful execution of his official duties.
- His appointment and job placement are and dependent upon his technical qualifications, ideally substantiated by a diploma gained through competitive examination.
- The administrative work is his full-time occupation.
- His work is rewarded by regular salary and prospects of advancement in a lifetime career. They have a monthly salary and usually pension rights. Their salary is graded according to a position in the hierarchy.
- The official can always leave the post, and under certain circumstances, he may be terminated.
- There is a clear hierarchy of officers and the function of the offices is clearly specified.
- Officials are appointed on the basis of a contract.
- There is a career structure, and promotion is possible either by seniority or merit or according to the judgment of superiors.
- The officials may appropriate neither the post nor the resources that go with it.
The civil services have three major functions
- It advises the government on policies
- It helps prepare and draft new legislation and
- It helps the government to run the country according to the legislation passed by the government.
Features of Indian Civil Services:
Permanent Nature:
The Civil service is permanent. It does not change with the change in government. They serve every government that comes into power, regardless of the ruling party. They are career officials and they are protected from frequent and arbitrary dismissal from office. A Civil Servant must work for a certain number of years before he will be retired provided he is of good behaviour. A civil servant can only be dismissed or sacked from office on grounds of embezzlement, bribery, and corruption against him. The general duration of service of Civil servant for a stay in office is for thirty-five years or up to he attains the age of 60 years when he retires.
Hierarchical Structure:
One of the important features of the Civil Service is its hierarchical structure. There is a Minister responsible for a ministry, under whom there is a Chief Director whose position is non-political and referred to as the Director-General. Other positions follow in an order of rank to the lowest in the service, each reporting to the next senior officer until it reaches the top.
Administrative wing of the Executive:
The Civil Service is that it serves as the administrative arm of the executive. The legislature makes laws, executives implement the law, and the judiciary interprets the law. Public service provides services to the general public. Such services include postal services, registration of land documents, acquisition of passports and driving license, etc.
Neutrality:
The Civil service is permanent. It does not change with the change in government. They serve every government that comes into power, regardless of the ruling party. The Civil Service is neutral in its work. It must be politically neutral and non-partisan. A Civil Servant must serve any government that comes to power impartially and without divided loyalty. It serves whichever political party is in power and helps it to achieve whatever policies they want to introduce. A Civil Servant is obliged to hide his political affiliation and pursue his work as a professional. A civil servant may have his political beliefs but he must not express it publicly. A civil servant must not belong to any political party. Civil servants are not expected to participate in partisan politics unless they resign their appointment as a Civil servant.
It is anonymous
Another feature is that the Civil service is anonymous. The role played by a civil servant in the formulation or implementation of any policy must not be made public. The operatives of Civil service do not come into the limelight. It operates in the dark. A Civil Servant is not praised for the success of a policy or blamed for the failure of the policy in public for any work done by him. The political head receives the praise and the blame for the policy. If the work done is good the minister who is the political head of the ministry will take the praise in public and vice versa.
Tapism:
The rules and regulations in the general order i.e. (G. O.) are strictly followed in the civil service.