All-India Services

Like in any other federation, the Centre and the states also have their separate public services called as the Central Services and the State Services respectively. In addition, there are all-India services-IAS, IPS and IFS. The members of these services occupy top positions (or key posts) under both the Centre and the states and serve them by turns. But, they are recruited and trained by the Centre.

These services are controlled jointly by the Centre and the states. The ultimate control lies with the Central government while the

immediate control vests with the state governments.

In 1947, Indian Civil Service (ICS) was replaced by IAS and the Indian Police (IP) was replaced by IPS and were recognised by the Constitution as All-India Services. In 1966, the Indian Forest Service (IFS) was created as the third All-India Service. Article 312 of the Constitution authorises the Parliament to create new All-India Services on the basis of a Rajya Sabha resolution to that effect.

Each of these three all-India services, irrespective of their division among different states, form a single service with common rights and status and uniform scales of pay throughout the country.

Though the all-India services violate the principle of federalism under the Constitution by restricting the autonomy and patronage of the states, they are supported on the ground that (i) they help in maintaining high standard of administration in the Centre as well as in the states; (ii) they help to ensure uniformity of the administrative system throughout the country; and (iii) they facilitate liaison, cooperation, coordination and joint action on the issues of common interest between the Centre and the states.

While justifying the institution of all-India services in the Constituent Assembly, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar observed that: "The dual polity which is inherent in a federal system is followed in all federations by a dual service. In all federations, there is a Federal Civil Service and a State Civil Service. The Indian federation, though a dual polity, will have a dual service, but with one exception. It is recognised that in every country there are certain posts in its administrative set up which might be called strategic from the point of view of maintaining the standard of administration. There can be no doubt that the standard of administration depends upon the calibre of the civil servants who are appointed to the strategic posts. The Constitution provides that without depriving the states of their rights to form their own civil services, there shall be an all-India service, recruited on an allIndia basis with common qualifications, with uniform scale of pay and members of which alone could be appointed to those strategic posts throughout the Union”.8