| India: Integrity Scorecard Report > Sub-Category: Civil Service Regulations | ||
| Indicators | Score | |
| 41 | Are there national regulations for the civil service encompassing, at least, the managerial and professional staff? | 100 |
| 42 | Is the law governing the administration and civil service effective? | 75 |
| 43 | Are there regulations addressing conflicts of interest for civil servants? | 54 |
| 44 | Can citizens access the asset disclosure records of senior civil servants? | 33 |
Indicator and sub-Indicator Details
| 41 | Are there national regulations for the civil service encompassing, at least, the managerial and professional staff? | |||||||
| 41a: In law, there are regulations requiring an impartial, independent and fairly managed civil service. | ||||||||
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Comments: The constitution attempts to provide for an independent, impartial and non-political civil service. Special protection has been guaranteed to the higher civil service under the constitution to ensure that they act in a fair and impartial manner. References: Article 312 of the constitution
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| 41b: In law, there are regulations to prevent nepotism, cronyism, and patronage within the civil service. | ||||||||
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Comments: The Civil Service Rules (CSR) clearly outline the norms that civil servants are required to follow. The Prevention of Corruption Act categorically delineates what constitutes an act of nepotism and corruption. References: Civil Service Conduct Rules; Prevention of Corruption Act.
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| 41c: In law, there is an independent redress mechanism for the civil service. | ||||||||
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Comments: There is a Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) and state administrative tribunals (SAT) to redress the grievances of civil servants. References: Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms: www. persmin.nic.in/
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| 41d: In law, civil servants convicted of corruption are prohibited from future government employment. | ||||||||
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Comments: A civil service officer against whom formal court proceedings are launched is often placed under suspension. On the basis of the final judgment, a decision is made whether to dismiss the officer from service. If dismissed, he/she is not eligible for reappointment in government. References: Civil Service Conduct Rules; Dept of Personnel and Administrative Reforms: www.persmin.nic.in/
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| 42 | Is the law governing the administration and civil service effective? | |||||||
| 42a: In practice, civil servants are protected from political interference. | ||||||||
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Comments: In recent years, there has been increasing evidence to show that the civil service is getting increasingly politicized and straying away from the path of political neutrality. An unholy nexus between the political leadership and the bureaucracy is developing, which is resulting in the bureaucracy becoming sensitive to political cues. While the higher civil service has been guaranteed protection from political interference by the constitution, they have often been swayed by political considerations. This is not to say that all civil servants should be painted with the same brush. There are those rare cases of officers who stand up to the political leadership. The media today often highlight such instances. References: Civil Service Rules of Conduct Memoirs of Retired Civil Servants in India WHY I AM NOT A CIVIL SERVANT: Ajay Singh Yadav; Bluejay Books, New Delhi; Srishti Publishers and Distributors; A Cabinet Secretary Looks Back By BG Deshmukh, HarperCollins India, 392pp, Rs 500 Tale Told by an Idiot R K Noronha Memoirs of a Civil Servant, Dharam Vira
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| 42b: In practice, civil servants are appointed and evaluated according to professional criteria. | ||||||||
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Comments: A distinction must be made with regard to those appointed on the basis of examinations conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and those appointed on the basis of examinations conducted by State Public Service Commissions. The UPSC conducts the examination for the elite All India Services and the Central Services, while the State Public Service Commissions conduct the examinations for the State Services. The UPSC examinations and later recruitment by the Union is generally considered to be fair and on the basis of professional criteria. With regard to the State Public Service Commissions, there have been several complaints of nepotism, favoritism and other non-professional factors. With regard to evaluation of civil servants during their service, the procedures laid down are fair but have often been mired in controversies because of subjective and partisan assessments. References: Article 312 of the constitution; Civil Service Rules of Conduct Memoirs of Retired Civil Servants in India; WHY I AM NOT A CIVIL SERVANT: Ajay Singh Yadav; Bluejay Books, New Delhi; Srishti Publishers and Distributors; A Cabinet Secretary Looks Back By BG Deshmukh, HarperCollins India, 392pp, Rs 500; Tale Told by an Idiot R K Noronha; Memoirs of a Civil Servant, Dharam Vira
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| 42c: In practice, civil service management actions (e.g. hiring, firing, promotions) are not based on nepotism, cronyism, or patronage. | ||||||||
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Comments: Hiring and firing would receive high scores in terms of objectivity. Promotions and transfers would score lower. Let's take each separately. A distinction must be made with regard to those appointed on the basis of examinations conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and those appointed on the basis of examinations conducted by State Public Service Commissions. The UPSC conducts the examination for the elite All India Services and the Central Services, while the State Public Service Commissions conduct the examinations for the State Services. The UPSC examinations and later recruitment by the Union is generally considered to be fair and on the basis of professional criteria. With regard to the State Public Service Commissions, there have been several complaints of nepotism, favoritism and other non-professional factors. With regard to evaluation of civil servants during their service, the procedures laid down are fair but have often been mired in controversies because of subjective and partisan assessments. Increasingly, nepotism, favouritism based on caste and political loyalties determine postings and promotions. References: www.upsc.nic.in; Civil Service Rules of Conduct Memoirs of Retired Civil Servants in India WHY I AM NOT A CIVIL SERVANT: Ajay Singh Yadav; Bluejay Books, New Delhi; Srishti Publishers and Distributors; A Cabinet Secretary Looks Back By BG Deshmukh, HarperCollins India, 392pp, Rs 500 Tale Told by an Idiot R K Noronha Memoirs of a Civil Servant, Dharam Vira
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| 42d: In practice, civil servants have clear job descriptions. | ||||||||
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Comments: The majority have clear job descriptions. The demarcation of responsibilities between the political and permanent executive positions has become controversial in recent times. There have been a few cases of corruption, nepotism, inefficiency, delay and the like. Investigations revealed that it is difficult to fix the responsibility on any individual/position and the error/deviant behavior is described to be a result of system failure. References: Civil Service Rules of Conduct Memoirs of Retired Civil Servants in India WHY I AM NOT A CIVIL SERVANT: Ajay Singh Yadav; Bluejay Books, New Delhi; Srishti Publishers and Distributors; A Cabinet Secretary Looks Back By BG Deshmukh, HarperCollins India, 392pp, Rs 500 Tale Told by an Idiot R K Noronha Memoirs of a Civil Servant, Dharam Vira
Peer Review Comments: The descriptions are clear, but perhaps the execution is not.
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| 42e: In practice, civil servant bonuses constitute only a small faction of total pay. | ||||||||
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Comments: There needs to be some clarity on bonuses. Does this mean extra legal remuneration for completion of special work or for doing a task with a higher level of efficiency? If this were the definition of bonus, then the civil servants in India are not given any significant bonuses. If bonuses are taken to mean extra sources of wealth, then it has become a major bone of contention today. Many believe that the reason why the civil service attracts a lot of people is because of the opportunity to earn such bonuses.
References: Civil Service Rules of Conduct Memoirs of Retired Civil Servants in India WHY I AM NOT A CIVIL SERVANT: Ajay Singh Yadav; Bluejay Books, New Delhi; Srishti Publishers and Distributors; A Cabinet Secretary Looks Back By BG Deshmukh, HarperCollins India, 392pp, Rs 500 Tale Told by an Idiot R K Noronha Memoirs of a Civil Servant, Dharam Vira
Peer Review Comments: The prestige and power associated with these jobs is also a main draw to the civil services.
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| 42f: In practice, the government publishes the number of authorized civil service positions along with the number of positions actually filled. | ||||||||
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Comments: With regard to the federal government, the Web site of the Ministry of Personnel lists the details. With regard to the state governments, these details are often not available. References: Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions www.persmin.nic.in/
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| 42g: In practice, the independent redress mechanism for the civil service is effective. | ||||||||
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Comments: There is both a Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) and each state has an Administrative Tribunal (SAT). The civil servant has the opportunity to approach the tribunal for redress of grievances. There have been occasions when these tribunals have directed the government to take remedial measures to offset the hardship or injustice caused to an officer. There are also instances when officers have moved the Tribunal on decisions of the government relating to appointments made to selection posts. These are posts where both seniority and merit are taken into account when making appointments and the government makes a decision on the matter. Officers who feel injustice has been done to them often feel that the Tribunals are able to do precious little to secure what is rightfully theirs. However, it must be stressed that `selection posts` leave a lot of room for the discretion of the government of the day and thus can often become an issue of subjective controversy. References: www.nic.in; Ministry of Personnel Web site [ LINK ] WHY I AM NOT A CIVIL SERVANT: Ajay Singh Yadav; Bluejay Books, New Delhi; Srishti Publishers and Distributors; A Cabinet Secretary Looks Back By BG Deshmukh, HarperCollins India, 392pp, Rs 500; Tale Told by an Idiot R K Noronha ; Memoirs of a Civil Servant, Dharam Vira
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| 42h: In practice, in the past year, the government has paid civil servants on time. | ||||||||
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Comments: Civil servants are normally paid on time. In those rare cases when states face a fiscal crunch, it may just be that the payment of salaries is delayed by a few days. It may be a one-time occurrence. The flip side of the story is that civil servants ensure that they are paid on time, irrespective of whether others who depend on government grants are paid or not, because they control the levers of power! References: www.nic.in
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| 42i: In practice, civil servants convicted of corruption are prohibited from future government employment. | ||||||||
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Comments: In practice it has been found that it is quite a challenge to bring a charge against a civil servant to the level of conviction. If convicted, the civil servants (who would have already been fired) would be relieved from service and not eligible for future appointment. References: [ LINK ]
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| 43 | Are there regulations addressing conflicts of interest for civil servants? | |||||||
| 43a: In law, there are requirements for civil servants to recuse themselves from policy decisions where their personal interests may be affected. | ||||||||
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Comments: Civil servants are required to clearly bring to the notice of the authorities any issue which is coming under their purview that involves a conflict of interests. References: Civil Service Conduct Rules
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| 43b: In law, there are restrictions for civil servants entering the private sector after leaving the government. | ||||||||
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Comments: There are no legal restrictions that prohibit a civil servant from taking a position in the private sector after retirement. The general norm is that they should not take an assignment with any private agency that is involved with work they were linked to while in service. This problem that is coming to the forefront now is that officers are seeking voluntary retirement to work in the private sector. Many of them are taking responsibilities that are in direct conflict with what they were doing earlier. This is done is subtle ways by taking advisory/consultancy positions. References: Civil Service Conduct Rules
Peer Review Comments: The general norm mentioned in the comments is for two years.
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| 43c: In law, there are regulations governing gifts and hospitality offered to civil servants. | ||||||||
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Comments: There are regulations on the acceptance of gifts and hospitality. Further the rules state that an officer must declare any gifts/ hospitality accepted to the concerned authority, if such a gift or hospitality is not directly connected with his/ her work. References: All India Service Conduct Rules; Civil Service Rules
Peer Review Comments: The Central Vigilance Commission also has brought out a gift policy.
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| 43d: In practice, the regulations restricting post-government private sector employment for civil servants are effective. | ||||||||
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Comments: The Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has asked for more stringent measures to ensure that when officers leave government service they do not take up employment that is directly or indirectly linked to responsibilities they had when they were involved with government. However, not much has been done in this regard and several controversies linked to retired government officers have thus emerged. The media attempt to expose this now and then. References: www.cvc.gov.in/
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| 43e: In practice, the regulations governing gifts and hospitality offered to civil servants are effective. | ||||||||
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Comments: There have been cases reported of officers accepting gifts and hospitality disproportionate to their status and position. The laws are too lax to be able to ensure that officers adhere to norms. References: [ LINK ]
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| 43f: In practice, the requirements for civil service recusal from policy decisions affecting personal interests are effective. | ||||||||
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Comments: There are several controversies in this regard. The most recent involves an election commissioner (EC) who was in the civil service and also had an interest in several charitable trusts in which his family members were trustees. He is believed to have influenced contributions to these trusts using his position and influence in the civil service. Many political groups have demanded that he vacate the EC's position as many politicians and elected representatives has made contributions to the trusts. This matter has snowballed into a major controversy. Several raids by the state ombudsman on the properties of officials have shown that the assets possesed are disproportionate to wealth and involve the stake of officers in private trusts and funds which are indirectly linked to official responsibilities that they may have discharged in the past. References: Website of the Karnataka Lokayukta: www.kar.nic.in
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| 44 | Can citizens access the asset disclosure records of senior civil servants? | |||||||
| 44a: In law, citizens can access the asset disclosure records of senior civil servants. | ||||||||
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Comments: At one level a officer will have to file his/her income tax returns as a citizen. At another level All India Service Rules, require an officer to file their asset returns. This is often not closely monitored. it may not be easily accessible to common citizens, unless they take recourse to the RTI act. Further, in some states, the state level ombudsman is directing officers to file their asset returns. This has been a matter steeped in controversy. References: Website of state governments: www.nic.in
Peer Review Comments: I do not agree. As per the All India Service Rules, the senior civil servants have to file their Annual Property Returns. With the RTI in place, they are accessible. The same applies to all Group B and Group A civil servants.
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| 44b: In practice, citizens can access the asset disclosure records of senior civil servants within a reasonable time period. | ||||||||
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Comments: As the declaration of assers is not automatically accessible to citizens unless it is placed on the Web site( as is done in the case of some states by state ombudsman authorities) the procedures outlines in the Right to Information Act have to be employed to gain access to this information. References: website of state ombudsman authorities: www.nic.in
Peer Review Comments: In practice, citizens have no access to the disclosure records.
Peer Review Comments: I do not agree. As per the All India Service Rules, the senior civil servants have to file their Annual Property Returns. With the RTI in place, they are accessible. The same applies to all Group B and Group A civil servants.
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| 44c: In practice, citizens can access the asset disclosure records of senior civil servants at a reasonable cost. | ||||||||
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Comments: Those disclosures made on the Web site of state level ombudsman authorities can be accessed. Citizens would need to use the RTI (Right to Information) route to gain access to information which is not on the net. This often involves procedures and delays. References: State Lok Ayukta: www.kar.nic.in
Peer Review Comments: Since there is no provision to access the records, the question of cost does not arise.
Peer Review Comments: I do not agree. As per the All India Service Rules, the senior civil servants have to file their Annual Property Returns. With the RTI in place, they are accessible. The same applies to all Group B and Group A civil servants.
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