But OPS cadres continue to languish

At least 24 Odisha Forest Service (OFS) officers would be able to get into the Indian Forest Service (IFS) following the latest move of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).

For last six years, these OFS officers were not getting the scope for promotion to the IFS as the matter was embroiled in litigations. Now, the UPSC has asked the State Government to hold a Review Selection Committee meeting for the OFS officers to fill up the vacancies for the years 2008, 2009 and 2010.

The UPSC has also instructed the State Government to send proposals for filling up the vacancies for the years 2011 and 2012, said official sources. The UPSC instructions were received here on August 14 and the State Government has started taking steps in this regard.

While the State’s IFS cadre strength is 141, the number of posts to be filled up by direct recruitment is 99 and 42 posts are to be filled up by promotion. While 18 posts are filled up through promotion, there are 24 posts lying vacant as the filling up of posts through the promotion route was not taken up for last six years.

But while OFS officers would be able to get promotion to the IFS, there is little scope for the Odisha Police Service (OPS) officers to get into the Indian Police Service (IPS), rued a senior OPS officer.

There are 57 posts in the IPS cadre to be filled up by promotion, but the posts are vacant for more than a decade. With direct recruitment of Deputy Superintendents of Police (DSP) having been stopped since late 1970s, eligible OPS officers suitable for promotion are not available, as a result of which not a single OPS officer is able to get into the IPS.

For the IPS rank, an OPS officer has to have at least eight years of service and should not above the age of 54. Officers recruited as Sub-Inspectors have been able to meet the requirement criteria of years of service, but due to the age factor they could not get into the IPS.

Now, as the State Government has decided to go in for recruitment of DSPs directly, the Odisha Public Service Commission (OPSC) has taken up the recruitment process. Once these directly recruited DSPs complete eight years of service, they would be illegible for promotion to the IPS, said official sources.