Shimla (05.07.2023): Despite a shortfall of around 35 IAS officers in a cadre of 153 and retirement of five bureaucrats holding important posts this year further reducing in the number of bureaucrats in the state, still the Himachal Pradesh government is not keen on taking more officers. 

At present, 110 IAS officers are serving in Himachal on various posts, while 10 are on central deputation. Despite a shortfall of almost 35 officers, the state government has been seeking not more than two-three officers in every batch. It was in 2016 when the state had got six IAS officers.

Himachal has five posts of Additional Chief Secretary (ACS), including the Chief Secretary, but it does not have even a single bureaucrat serving as ACS. The only two ACS-rank officers, K Sanjay Murthy (IAS: 1989: HP) and Ali Raza Rizvi (IAS: 1988: HP), are presently posted with the Centre Government. Two ACS, Nisha Singh (IAS: 1987: HP) and Sanjay Gupta (IAS: 1988: HP), were elevated as Advisers to the Government when R D Dhiman was appointed Chief Secretary.

A person can be appointed as ACS only after putting in 30 years of service and two officers from the 1994 batch -- Anuradha Thakur and Onkar Chand Sharma -- will be due for promotion from January 2024. At present, Thakur is on central deputation while Sharma is serving as Principal Secretary (Revenue and Forest).