Feeling the pinch

The government’s inability to fill vacancies in the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and Indian Police Service (IPS) through the promotion quota is in focus again, thanks to the Supreme Court which has now taken up the issue with government, following a petition claiming that there were 33 vacant posts in the Union Territory cadre alone.

However, nearly every state is facing a babu crunch, sources say. According to government figures 1,155 IAS posts and over 1,300 IPS posts are currently vacant. In Maharashtra, out of a sanctioned strength of 352 IAS posts, 54 posts are vacant and as many as 40 IAS babus are currently on Central deputation. Bihar has only 200 IAS babus against a quota of 326, and 155 IPS officers against 231 sanctioned posts. Orissa has 45 IAS vacancies but nearly double the number of vacancies in IPS. It’s not just apathy, as long-time babu-watchers know, but also the widespread politicisation of promotions and transfers of civil servants. Tackling that would be a real challenge, even for the apex court.

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Lingering legacy
The controversy over suspended Prasar Bharati chief B.S. Lalli continues to linger, even as the issues leading to his ouster have now moved into the realms of the courts. According to sources, the information and broadcasting ministry has locked horns with the law ministry over the latter’s decision to change the law officer arguing the government’s case against Mr Lalli at the Supreme Court.
And those who thought that the kursi of director general of Doordarshan is a hot seat, there are still many babus hoping to replace D.G. Aruna Sharma who too departed along with Mr Lalli under a scam cloud.
According to sources, the Prasar Bharati board has received applications from not just within the information service but also from senior Indian Administrative Service babus. No doubt, Ms Sharma’s replacement will be announced in due course, but till then, there will be quite a few hopefuls. Watch this space for updates.