Will Telangana and Andhra Pradesh have two independent cadres for IAS and IPS officers or will there be a joint cadre on the lines of Assam-Meghalaya or Manipur-Tripura?
While the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) and the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) have not yet given it a thought, the babulog seem to be doing the mathematics endlessly, wondering what is in store for them.
However, members of both the services are not at all that gung-ho about the division and are of the view that the next few years are going to be chaotic, as far as the state administration is concerned.
“Once the MHA decides on the cadre strength for each of the two states, then the process would start. Those belonging to Andhra would work there, while those in Telangana would be posted in that region. Outsiders can then be distributed batchwise, between the two states,” pointed out a senior IPS officer.
As of now, the Andhra Pradesh cadre strength of IAS officers is about 320 and that of IPS is 255.
“In the case of IPS officers, the MHA can decide on having 120 to 130 as the cadre strength for each state, which can be done without a hitch. The nativity of the officers plays an important role along with preference,” another official said.
However, another section of officers says having a joint cadre could be helpful as it can ensure that there is no dearth of officers in either states. “Having a joint cadre can be helpful as the officers will belong to the AP cadre, but will be posted in both the regions, like it is done at present,” said one officer.
However, the possibility of having a joint cadre appears remote as both Telangana and Andhra will be fairly bigger states when compared to those which have joint cadre system.
Now, there are about 20 IPS officers from Telangana and about 45 from Andhra region, while the rest are outsiders. Similarly in IAS, there are about 120 from Andhra, about 40 from Telangana and the rest from outside the state.
At present, there are three joint cadres--Assam-Meghalaya, Manipur-Tripura, and Arunachal Pradesh-Goa-Mizoram-Union Territories (AGMUT).
“All these issues are being discussed, but how it will take shape remains to be seen. All that I can say is that the situation would be chaotic for the next few years,” said a senior IAS officer.