UPSC issues ad for lateral entry into bureaucracy: What is the policy, why it has no reservation provision

UPSC issues ad for lateral entry into bureaucracy: What is the policy, why it has no reservation provision

Subject:  Polity

Sec: executive

Context:

The Centre has opened a fresh round of lateral recruitments, from the private sector and elsewhere, into senior posts in the bureaucracy. Such appointments have also been criticised for not extending reservations to SC, ST and OBC communities.

More on News:

• A total of 45 posts have been advertised with individuals having appropriate qualifications and experience from State/UT governments, PSUs, statutory organisations, research institutes and universities, and even the private sector eligible to apply.
• The advertisement mentions that all posts are “suitable for candidates belonging to the category of Persons with Benchmark Disability (PwBD).”

 Positions open for lateral entry:

• The first vacancies for lateral entrants were advertised in 2018, but only for Joint Secretary level positions.
• A Joint Secretary, appointed by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC), has the third-highest rank (after Secretary and Additional Secretary) in a Department, and functions as the administrative head of a wing in the Department.
• Directors are one rank below Joint Secretaries, and Deputy Secretaries are one rank below Directors, although in most ministries, they perform the same job.

Union government’s logic behind introducing lateral entries:

• In 2019, Minister of State for the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) Jitendra Singh told the Rajya Sabha that “lateral recruitment is aimed at achieving the twin objectives of bringing in fresh talent as well as augment the availability of manpower”.
• The idea behind lateral recruitment is for the government to tap into individuals’ domain expertise and specialised know-how, regardless of whether they are career bureaucrats or not.
• Aim: It allows individuals with specialized skills, expertise, and experience in specific domains to join the bureaucracy at higher levels. 
• By bringing in professionals from diverse backgrounds, it intends to inject fresh perspectives, innovative ideas, and specialized expertise into the administrative system.