Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh government has tightened the rules governing outsourcing-based recruitment, making prior written approval from the Finance Department mandatory for all fresh outsourcing engagements across government departments and agencies. The move is aimed at ensuring that outsourcing remains a temporary arrangement and does not become a substitute for regular government employment.
The revised guidelines, issued by Principal Secretary (Finance) Devesh Kumar to all Administrative Secretaries and Heads of Departments, state that outsourced personnel cannot be appointed against posts where regular recruitment has already been completed or where sanctioned vacancies are filled.
The Finance Department has directed all departments to expedite regular recruitment for permanent posts and limit outsourcing to temporary, seasonal, non-core and specialised services. The government has emphasised that outsourcing should only be used to meet short-term requirements and not as a long-term staffing mechanism.
The instructions clarify that more than 26,000 employees currently working on an outsourced basis across the state will continue in their existing roles. However, their engagement will remain purely temporary until regular recruitment is completed. Departments have also been asked to periodically review the necessity of retaining outsourced personnel.
Under the new policy, no department or government agency will be permitted to make fresh outsourced appointments, deploy outsourced manpower or engage outsourcing services without obtaining prior written approval from the Finance Department. Any appointment made without such approval will be treated as unauthorised.
According to the Finance Department, the revised framework has been introduced to improve administrative efficiency, enforce financial discipline and ensure compliance with legal provisions governing public employment. By centralising approval for outsourcing, the government also aims to bring greater accountability and uniformity in hiring practices across departments.
The decision comes amid increasing scrutiny of outsourcing in government services. Recently, the Himachal Pradesh High Court stayed the recruitment of Assistant Staff Nurses through outsourcing and directed the state government to file an affidavit explaining its policy on outsourced recruitment.
