Secretary to Government of India

Secretary (abbreviated as Secretary GOI) is a post and a rank under the Central Staffing Scheme[1] of the Government of India. This post is equal to Permanent Secretary, a post under Senior Civil Service Group in the United Kingdom or an officer in the Senior Executive Service in the United States.

The position holder is a career civil servant and a government official of high seniority. The members who hold this rank are either from All India Services (Deputation on tenure) or Central Civil Services (Group A; on empanelment). All promotions and appointments to this rank and post are directly made by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet of India.

In the functioning of Government of India, Secretary is the administrative head of the Ministry/Department.[2][3] In the state governments and Union Territories, they also hold senior positions such as Chief Secretary.

Secretaries in federal government of India is analogous to Lieutenant General (Vice Chief of Army Staff/Army Commanders) and equivalent ranks in Indian Armed Forces and are listed as such in the Order of Precedence[4][5]

History

N. Gopalaswami Ayyangar had once suggested "A secretary should not be immersed in files and burdened with routine. It is essential that he should have time to grasp the overall picture, size up the problems facing government in the field alloted to his charge, and think and plan ahead. All these are his proper functions and must be efficiently performed. Failure to make adequate provision in this respect cannot be compensated by mere increase in the establishment under his control."[6]

The Administrative Reforms Commission visualised the role of Secretary, primarily as one of 'coordinator, policy guide, reviewer and evaluator."[6]

Powers, responsibilities and postings

C. H. Bhabha with Secretary and Joint Secretaries to Government of India in 1947.

Secretary to the Government of India is the administrative head of the Ministry or Department, who is the principal adviser to the Minister on all matters of policy and the administration within the Ministry/Department.[3]

The role of Secretary are as follows:

The Prime Minister of India is the final authority on posting and transfer of officers of Secretary level.[7] Secretaries report either to the Cabinet Minister of India or to the Prime Minister of India.

Position

In the federal government, the members head department wings in the departments and ministries in federal government and hold positions such as Defence Secretary, Foreign Secretary, Home Secretary, emissaries in the foreign missions/embassies (Ambassadors]),[8] members and Chairman of the Railway Board, Chairman, managing director, full-time functional Director/Member of the Board of Management of various Public Sector Undertakings/ Enterprises, Corporations, Banks and financial institutions.

Emolument, accommodation and perks

An Indian Diplomatic Passport and an Official Passport generally issued to Joint Secretary (GOI).

All Secretaries to Government of India are eligible for Diplomatic passport. They are allotted Type VI (C-II, C-I) and Type VII apartments across Delhi by Ministry of Urban Development (Directorate of Estates).[9]

The officers appointed as Secretary in the Government of India are allowed to use a red beacon (without flasher).

 Secretary GOI monthly pay and allowances
Salary as per 7th Pay Commission (Per month) Level
₹201,000 (US$3,000) (Minimum Pay)[10] to ₹225,000 (US$3,300) (Maximum Pay) Level 17 Sources:[10][11]

Notable members

Notes

  1. ↑ Ram Vinay Shahi joined the Government of India in 2002 "through lateral entry" as Secretary to Government of India in the Ministry of Power, India during the time of Prime Minister of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh.
  2. ↑ Dinesh Bahadur Singh is the first CSS officer (non IAS) to be appointed as "Secretary of Rajya Sabha" in 2015.
  3. ↑ Omita Paul is the first IIS officer (non IAS) to be appointed as "Secretary to President of India" Pranab Mukherjee in 2012.
  4. ↑ APJ Abdul Kalam was a member of the Defence Research and Development Service (DRDS). He held the post of Secretary Defence R&D at the Defence Research and Development Organisation from July 1992 to December 1999.
  5. ↑ VK Saraswat was a member of the Defence Research and Development Service (DRDS). He held the post of Secretary Defence R&D at the Defence Research and Development Organisation from September 2009 to May 2013.

Reforms and challenges

Media articles and others have argued in favour of lateral entrants being recruited to this rank/post to infuse fresh energy and thinking into an insular, complacent and archaic bureaucracy.[12]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "The Central Staffing Scheme" (PDF). Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions. January 1996. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Laxmikanth, M. Governance in India. McGraw-Hill Education. ISBN 9789339204785.
  3. 1 2 "Central Secretariat Manual of Office Procedure - 14th Edition (2015)" (PDF). Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pension. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  4. ↑ "President's Secretariat" (PDF). Office of the President of India. Rajya Sabha. 26 August 1979. Retrieved 5 August 2010.
  5. ↑ Maheshwari, S. B. (2001). Indian Administration (Sixth Edition). Orient Blackswan. p. 666. ISBN 9788125019886.
  6. 1 2 Indian Administration. Pearson Education India. 2011. ISBN 9788131761199.
  7. ↑ "PM to oversee cadre allocation of bureaucrats, postings of joint secretaries and above". The Times of India. 21 August 2014. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
  8. ↑ "MEA Moves its Men, Post-Haste". The Sunday Standard. 2 March 2014. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
  9. ↑ "Compendium (RTI Act) – Government Residence (General Pool in Delhi) Rules" (PDF). Directorate of Estates, Ministry of Urban Development. January 2013. Retrieved 21 July 2014.
  10. 1 2 "PMO makes salaries of officials public" (PDF). The Economic Times. Retrieved 11 August 2016.
  11. ↑ "Report of the 7th Pay Commission of India" (PDF). Government of India. Retrieved 16 January 2016.
  12. ↑ "Lateral entry, blind alley". The Indian Express. Retrieved 15 November 2016.

External links

Official

Others

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