KOLKATA: Expressing "strong reservations" to Centre's proposal to amend the IAS (Cadre) Rules, 1954, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to roll back the decision claiming that the change in rules for central deputation of IAS officers will affect states' administration.
In a two-page letter sent recently, Banerjee alleged that the proposed amendment is against the "spirit of cooperative federalism".
"I express my strong reservations to the approach followed by the Central government in proposing such amendment to the Cadre Rules which unilaterally mandates the state government to make such a number of officers available for deputation as prescribed under (the) Central Deputation Reserve," the letter read.
The Centre has proposed an amendment to the IAS Cadre Rules which would enable it to post IAS officers on central deputation bypassing reservations of the state governments.
In its amendment, the Centre has proposed to insert a provision in Rule 6 of IAS (Cadre) Rules, 1954, which stated that any IAS officer could be posted on central deputation with the concurrence of the state government concerned.
The Centre has proposed to keep this part of the rule intact, but to add: "Provided that each State Government shall make available for deputation to the Central Government, such number of eligible officers of various levels to the extent of the Central Deputation Reserve prescribed under Regulations referred to in Rule 4 (1), adjusted proportionately by the number of officers available with the State Government concerned vis-a-vis the total authorised strength of the State Cadre at a given point of time."
"The actual number of officers to be deputed to the central government shall be decided by the Centre in consultation with the state government concerned," it added.
Incidentally, the Centre, in its proposal to amend the IAS Cadre (Rules), has recently asked the state governments to send lists of IAS officers for central deputation.
"Not only is the proposed amendment against the spirit of cooperative federalism but the same also upsets time-tested harmonious agreement which existed between Centre and states in the matter of posting of IAS-IPS officers," Banerjee wrote.
The West Bengal chief minister said that insisting officers be made available for deputation through the proposed amendment will not only affect the administration of states but also it would become impossible to assess and plan the administration of states.
"Such a position would also be detrimental to the spirit, confidence and motivation level of officers who feature in the Central Deputation Reserve. As has been seen in some recent instances, the Union Government has sought the services of some all-India service officers of West Bengal suddenly and unilaterally without any due consultation with the state. The proposed amendment will only legalise such actions which are clearly unwarranted," she said.
"I would beseech you to consider that the reciprocal spirit of interactive and consultative give and take, designed in the existing framework, should not be replaced by unilateralism. I request you to keep the federal spirit of the Cadre Rules unviolated by withdrawing/not giving effect to the proposed amendment," she added.
It may be mentioned that last year, the then state chief secretary Alapan Bandyopadhyay was suddenly summoned by the Centre for deputation.
The Mamata Banerjee government had not released Bandyopadhyay and the case is still pending in the court.
Bandyopadhyay had retired on May 31, 2021.
According to a well-placed source in the state secretariat, in 2021, West Bengal had around 280 IAS officers, but only 11 were posted with the central ministries.