Dilli Ka Babu: Retirement dilemma

The government is seriously considering raising the retirement age of Central Group A officers from 60 to 62 years. Apparently, the department of personnel and training (DoPT) has received several suggestions on the advantage of utilising the acumen of senior babus on the verge of retiring for another two years.

At the same, sources say, the government is reluctant to reduce the retirement age of babus other than Group A from 60 years to 58 years. It seems to be concerned about the possible financial burden likely to be added as pensions, gratuities and other dues of the retiring employees in addition to the salaries to be paid to the new recruits. Some observers see in this an indication that DoPT does not have a proper succession plan to ensure the smooth takeover of operations by younger recruits or that the retirement age needs to be readjusted upwards.

Frequent transfers
Transfers, though disruptive, are accepted as a normal part of babudom. But frequent transfers can be frustrating. In Karnataka, frequent transfers have driven a section of senior bureaucrats to lodge a formal protest with chief secretary Subhas Chandra Khuntia, who also heads the state civil services board. Sources report that the last straw was the latest round of transfers ordered by the Siddaramaiah government. Some of the babus ordered out have spent less than six months in their post.

There are many examples, sources say. Prominent among those transferred are P. Manivannan, who was posted as secretary, social welfare department, late last year. Munish Moudgil is back as commissioner, survey, settlement and land records, after he was abruptly transferred from the post last year after a fallout with the previous chief secretary. The housing department has had three secretaries in the past six months or so.

The situation is so bad, sources say, that some babus are even contemplating moving to the Centre on deputation or even abroad for an academic course. Though the Supreme Court in 2013 had suggested fixed tenures for bureaucrats and an independent body to deal with abrupt transfers, the state took three years to constitute the board, but clearly has little influence on the decisions of the political authority.

New cadre policy in offing
In every interaction with babus Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been encouraging them to go out in the field and not restrict themselves to files to learn about decision-making. It’s not known how many babus have felt inspired to act on his suggestion, but there is a new radical move by the government which babus may not be able to opt out of.

The Modi government has formulated a new policy for cadre allocation for IAS, IPS and other officers, aimed at ensuring “national integration” in the country’s top bureaucracy. Officers of all-India services — the Indian Administrative Service, Indian Police Service and Indian Forest Service — will have to choose cadres from a set of zones instead of states.

At present, officers of the three services are allocated a cadre state or a set of states to work in. They may be posted on Central deputation during the course of their service after fulfilling certain eligibility conditions. According to sources, the existing 26 cadres have been divided into five zones in the new policy proposed by the department of personnel and training. The new policy will seek to ensure that officers from Bihar, for instance, will get to work in southern and northeastern states, which may not be their preferred cadres. The policy is likely to be put into effect from this year.