Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh government has decided to reduce the sanctioned strength of its IAS, IPS and IFS cadres, citing the need to cut administrative expenditure and ensure better utilisation of officers.
The state government has approached the Department of Personnel under the Central Government seeking a reduction in the cadre strength. The IAS cadre is proposed to be reduced from 153 to 130 officers, while the IFS cadre is proposed to come down from 118 to 83. The government is also planning to reduce the existing IPS cadre strength of 96 officers.
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said the state does not need an unnecessarily large administrative setup and that the number of officers should be determined according to the actual requirements of the government.
CM Wants Smaller IAS Cadre
Speaking informally to journalists at Oak Over in Shimla on Monday, Sukhu said the government should have only as many officers as are required to effectively implement government schemes and deliver services to the public.
The Chief Minister said that, personally, he would prefer to bring the IAS cadre down to around 100–110 officers. However, keeping in view the concerns expressed by some IAS officers, the government has currently proposed a cadre strength of 130.
According to the Chief Minister, having too many officers without sufficient work can result in the underutilisation of their capabilities. The proposed reduction, therefore, is aimed not merely at reducing expenditure but also at ensuring that officers are given meaningful responsibilities and their expertise is utilised effectively.
The state government believes that reducing the number of officers will substantially lower its administrative expenditure. The Chief Minister indicated that the savings could be utilised for public-oriented programmes and development activities.
Sukhu said that the greater the reduction in the number of officers, the greater would be the savings available to the government.
The move comes as the state government continues to look for ways to reduce its administrative burden and optimise expenditure.
As part of the broader cost-cutting exercise, the government is also planning to reduce the number of vehicles available to field officers.
According to the Chief Minister, the existing fleet of 56 vehicles for field officers will be reduced to 30.
The government is also working towards shifting its entire government vehicle fleet towards electric vehicles, which it expects will help reduce long-term operational and fuel expenses.
More Freedom for Central Deputation
The Chief Minister also highlighted a change in the government’s approach towards officers seeking central deputation.
He said files of officers seeking deputation to the Central Government were earlier sometimes held back, but this practice has now been discontinued. Officers seeking central postings are being given approval and relief without unnecessary delay.
According to Sukhu, a large number of Himachal-cadre officers are currently serving with the Central Government, particularly in Delhi.
25 IAS Officers on Central Deputation
At present, 25 IAS officers of the Himachal Pradesh cadre are serving with the Central Government, according to the information provided by the state government.
These include Anuradha Thakur, Bharat Harbans Lal Khera, Manish Garg, Dr. Rajnish, Subhashish Panda, Amandeep Garg, Pushpendra Rajput, Meera Mohanty, Priyatu Mandal, Kadam Sandeep Vasant, Mansi Sahay Thakur, Rohan Chand Thakur, Lalit Jain, Rigved Milind Thakur, Dr. Richa Verma, Pankaj Rai, Harikesh Meena, Devashweta Banik, Kritika Kulhari, Ashutosh Garg, Arindam Chaudhary and Nidhi Patel.
In addition, Nipun Jindal, Vivek Bhatia and Rakesh Kumar Prajapati have recently proceeded on central deputation.
24 IPS Officers, 17 IFS Officers on Deputation
The state has also reported that 24 IPS officers belonging to the Himachal cadre are currently on central deputation.
Similarly, out of the existing 118 IFS officers in the Himachal cadre, 17 are serving on central deputation.
The high number of officers serving outside the state is also one of the factors being considered as the government reviews its cadre requirements.
