{"id":42858,"date":"2025-05-07T19:05:45","date_gmt":"2025-05-07T13:35:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=42858"},"modified":"2025-05-07T19:06:31","modified_gmt":"2025-05-07T13:36:31","slug":"bureaucracy-in-india","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/07-05-2025\/bureaucracy-in-india","title":{"rendered":"Bureaucracy in India"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS2\/Governance<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Civil services are crucial in <strong>maintaining and strengthening democracy<\/strong> but there is a <strong>need for lateral entrants and greater transparency.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>About<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The concept of a merit based modern Civil Service in India was introduced in <strong>1854<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>From 1922 onwards<\/strong> the Indian Civil Service Examination began to be held in India.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>After independence, the<strong> Union Public Service Commission (UPSC)<\/strong> became responsible for conducting the exams.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Civil Services Day is observed on <strong>21st April every year<\/strong> to commemorate the day <strong>in 1947 when Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel <\/strong>addressed the <strong>first batch of civil servants at the Metcalfe House, New Delhi.\u00a0<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>He termed civil servants as the <strong>&#8220;Steel frame of India,&#8221;<\/strong> emphasizing their role in maintaining unity and integrity.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-background\" style=\"background-color:#fff2cc\"><tbody><tr><td><strong>History of Civil Services in India<\/strong><br>&#8211; <strong>Lord Cornwallis<\/strong> is considered as \u2018Father of Civil Services in India\u2019.<br>&#8211; <strong>Lord Wellesley<\/strong> founded the College of <strong>Fort William in Calcutta in 1800<\/strong> to educate young recruits for the Civil Services.\u00a0<br>1. But the directors of the Company, in 1806, replaced it with their own <strong>East Indian College at Haileybury in England.<\/strong><br>&#8211; Before 1853 East India Company directors used to appoint Civil Servants. Board of Control members were allowed to make some nominations.<br>&#8211; <strong>The Charter Act of 1853 <\/strong>abolished the patronage system and introduced open competitive examinations.<br>&#8211; The first competitive exams for the Indian Civil Services (ICS) were held in London in <strong>1855<\/strong>.<br>&#8211; <strong>Satyendranath Tagore<\/strong> was the first Indian to clear ICS in <strong>1864<\/strong>.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Role of Civil Services in Governance<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Service delivery:<\/strong> They are responsible for administering welfare schemes and ensuring that public services reach the intended beneficiaries, particularly at the last mile.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Maintaining law and order:<\/strong> Civil servants ensure peace, justice, and security by upholding the rule of law and coordinating with law enforcement agencies.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Elections: <\/strong>They have been instrumental in the conduct of free and fair elections, and ensuring smooth transfer of power both at the Centre and States.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Uninterrupted Administration:<\/strong> There have been numerous instances when States have been placed under President\u2019s rule, with the civil servants ensuring uninterrupted administration during such times.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Policy Making:<\/strong> They provide advice to governments in policy making and also implement the policies made by the political executive.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Challenges faced by civil services<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Political Bias:<\/strong> Neutrality as a trait is fast eroding among bureaucrats, resulting in political bias in discharge of critical functions.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The cause and effect of this phenomenon is the increasing political interference in all aspects of bureaucracy including postings and transfers.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Lack of Expertise:<\/strong><strong> <\/strong>Bureaucrats who are generalists, may lack the expertise needed to address technical challenges.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Corruption:<\/strong> There is also significant corruption at all levels of the bureaucracy that often goes unpunished.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Red-tapism:<\/strong> Excessive procedural formalities often delay decision-making and hinder timely service delivery.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Mental health issues: <\/strong>High-pressure environments, and long working hours impact the mental well-being of civil servants.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Resistance to innovation:<\/strong> A rigid administrative culture discourages experimentation and adoption of new practices.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Outdated rules and procedures:<\/strong> Many service regulations are colonial-era legacies that are not compatible with modern governance needs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-background\" style=\"background-color:#ebecf0\"><tbody><tr><td><strong>Constitutional Provisions<\/strong><br>&#8211; <strong>Article 309<\/strong> empowers Parliament and State Legislatures to regulate recruitment and conditions of service.<br>&#8211; <strong>Article 310<\/strong> of the Constitution states that civil servants of the Union and the States hold office during the pleasure of the President or the Governor, respectively.<br>&#8211; <strong>Article 311<\/strong> provides safeguards for civil servants against arbitrary dismissal.<br>&#8211; <strong>Article 312<\/strong> outlines the process for creating All India Services, such as the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), the Indian Police Service (IPS), and the Indian Forest Service (IFS).<br>&#8211; <strong>Articles 315 to 323<\/strong> of the Indian Constitution establish Public Service Commissions (PSCs) for both the Union (UPSC) and each state (SPSC).\u00a0<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Governance reforms to enhance efficiency of bureaucracy<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Mission Karmayogi National Program: <\/strong>It is a flagship programme of Government of India <strong>launched in 2020<\/strong> for training of civil servants, which intends to transform the Civil Services from \u2018<strong>Rule Based\u2019 to \u2018Role Based\u2019<\/strong> way of functioning and Citizen Centric.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Lateral Entry into Civil Services<\/strong> to bring domain expertise and promote competitiveness in administration.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>e-Governance Initiatives:<\/strong> Centralised Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS) for grievance redressal, SPARROW for performance appraisal, and digitization of service records.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Conclusion<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Civil servants play a pivotal role in shaping the trajectory of India&#8217;s growth and governance, often known as the<strong> architects of Viksit Bharat.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The neutral bureaucracy needs to be insulated from undue political interference to uphold the rule of law and constitutional values.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>To maintain a harmonious balance between the political and permanent executive, the autonomy of career bureaucrats is essential.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>This includes reasonable independence with respect to postings, tenures and transfers.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Also, there needs to be a <strong>shift in the focus of bureaucrats from \u2018procedure\u2019 to \u2018outcomes.\u2019\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/news\/national\/what-are-the-challenges-faced-by-the-civil-services-explained\/article69546489.ece#:~:text=To%20maintain%20a%20harmonious%20balance,procedure&#039;%20to%20&#039;outcomes.&#039;\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"><strong>TH<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<h3><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h3>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Civil services are crucial in maintaining and strengthening democracy but there is a need for lateral entrants and greater transparency.<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<h3><strong>About<\/strong><\/h3>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">The concept of a merit based modern Civil Service in India was introduced in 1854.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">From 1922 onwards the Indian Civil Service Examination began to be held in India.<\/li>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/07-05-2025\/bureaucracy-in-india\" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42858","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42858","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42858"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42858\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":42868,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42858\/revisions\/42868"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42858"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42858"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42858"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}