Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu has stated that he has proposed to reduce the sanctioned strength of IAS, IPS and Indian Forest Service (IFS) officers in the state in order to lower the government’s administrative costs. Sukhu stated that his proposed restructuring would allow the state to save up to ₹200 crore every year.
As per his proposal, the sanctioned strength of IAS officers will be reduced from 153 to 130 and IFS posts would come down from 118 to 83. Further, the government had stated that it would review and reduce the 96 sanctioned posts of IPS. Sukhu has suggested that he would have preferred to have around 100–110 IAS officers, however, the current proposal being pursued seeks to bring it down to 130.
The Himachal Pradesh government has argued that the state does not need such a huge number of senior All India Services officers and some of these posts do not have enough work. According to the government, reducing the cadre would bring in a lean administration and help rechannel the savings for public welfare and development. This comes after reports of Himachal Pradesh seeking to rationalise the IAS and IFS cadres in May.
The proposal, however, has generated a political and administrative debate. Opposition leaders questioned the government’s approach while some serving officials contested the assessment that there is not enough work for senior officers. Official Himachal government records continue to show regular appointments, transfers and postings of IAS, IPS and IFS officers, while the Centre’s published figures list Himachal’s authorised IAS strength at 153 and IPS strength at 96. The proposed reductions therefore still need consideration and approval at the central level before they can become effective.