Lateral entry was brought in to inject verve and decisive action in the bureaucracy. The PM himself has in the past questioned the need to let IAS officers run everything, including areas that needed specific expertise.

On February 10, 2021, speaking in the Lok Sabha, the PM had said: "In this country, everything can't be done by bureaucrats. IAS officers cannot run fertiliser and chemical units, IAS officers cannot fly aircraft. What kind of power have we given to bureaucrats? By giving everything in the hands of bureaucrats what (do) we want to achieve?"

At a meeting chaired by the PM in the last week of October this year, the problems faced by lateral entry officers came up for discussion. The meeting, attended by secretaries in key departments, discussed the functioning of lateral entry professionals and their performance.

According to sources, notwithstanding the prime minister’s intention to bring diversity and improve policymaking, the outcome of the lateral entry system has so far not been satisfactory. The system somehow keeps lateral entrants from contributing in the manner it was envisaged. Therefore, measures to empower them and bring them on par with other service officers were discussed, the sources said.

In 2018, the government approved lateral entry for certain civil services positions, such as Joint Secretary-level posts, to experienced private sector candidates. They were to be hired on a three-year contract, extendable by two years with the same pay and perks as their peers in the permanent bureaucracy. But they can't be retained beyond five years, even if they are outstanding.

Worldwide, countries known for their civil services management follow both direct entry via exam and lateral entry, like Australia, the USA and the UK. The Netherlands and Germany, which are known for better civil servants, follow an open entry system.

In India, lateral entrants have been recruited in two phases so far. In the first phase, 8 Joint Secretaries were recruited in 2019. Then in 2022, 30 officers (3 Joint Secretaries, 27 Directors) were selected and appointed in 2022, they are yet to complete their three-year contract.

 

In May and June 2023, the Department of Personnel and Training recommended to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to appoint another 37 personnel.

The UPSC advertised for the recruitment of 20 officers (Joint Secretary, Director and Deputy Secretary) and a few days later, the fourth round of recruitment announcement was made for a total 17 officer posts (Joint Secretary, Director and Deputy Secretary). Applications have been called for the total 37 posts but the selection process is not likely to be completed before March 2024.

The latest recruitment advertisement is clear on certain qualifications for different posts. But some that are common for Joint Secretaries are: 10-15 years of experience in the policy space, analysis of developments in the sector and formulation of legislation and public policy-related thereto. For Directors, the minimum experience is 10 years and for Deputy Secretary, it is 7 years. Candidates for these two posts too need similar exposure in the public policy space.

How Have Lateral Entrants Fared

The posting patterns and the deployment of lateral entry candidates suggest that even in ministries they have been posted to, they don’t like being in the mainstream of policy decisions.

“Inducting lateral entry professionals into bureaucracy is a good move. But only intention and the process of bringing them in is not enough,” said Prashant Goel, a retired bureaucrat. “They were onboarded in advisory roles. They are technically sound and have the right skills. But we are yet to see any significant changes after their appointment," Goel said.

Another area of concern is that the lateral entrants have had difficulties in fitting into the bureaucratic system. For instance, from the 8 Joint Secretaries who were hired in 2019 and joined different ministries, such as Finance, Commerce and Civil Aviation, one officer left barely after a few weeks of service. The government deployed the rest in various ministries as per requirement and in roles where they could have utilised their knowledge and expertise.

Similarly, appointing an officer in a ministry that deals with his prior experience does create problems. For instance, an expert in civil aviation operational management was handed the responsibility of administration in the ministry. He completed his three years and rejoined the private sector since he wasn't satisfied with the assignment. Besides, the stamp of working in government had already added more gravitas to his résumé. Another lateral entrant, a Joint Secretary in the Commerce Ministry, left almost on the same lines.

“Some of them are good officers, they have done a wonderful job in the technical areas. But at the same time, it is also true that they don’t know the rules. They come with the mindset that government officers don’t work. As a result, clashes take place,” Goel said.

Career Babus vs Lateral Entrants

Career bureaucrats tend to have reservations about lateral entrants. One argument is that the bureaucracy in India is a service-conscious one. Lateral entrants have the corporate mindset of profit-making whereas in the government, the motive is public service. Lateral entrants find themselves out of sync and, sometimes, are not even part of regular meetings and find it hard to cope.

Their working style is also at odds. Lateral entrants are results-driven and are used to exceptions from protocol, whereas service bureaucrats always follow the process. As a result, lateral entrants get sent to insignificant places in the government where they don't get to make any contribution to governance.

Further, service bureaucrats don’t mingle well with lateral entrants. They work under the same bosses but a majority of private professionals find themselves misfits. IAS circles are rife with the view that lateral entrants don’t understand the nuances of the bureaucratic set-up.

"The intention to recruit private professionals through lateral entry is good but the success would depend on their deployment in significant postings,” a 1984 batch retired IAS officer said on condition of anonymity.

A largely liberal section of senior bureaucrats in the service supports the idea of lateral entry. But they want to evaluate the success of the model and plug loopholes.

“Unless this is done, the idea of bringing variety and diversity in bureaucracy and other objectives of placement of new entrants will be defeated," said a senior IAS officer in the government.

Curtains Or An Encore?

The lateral entry programme took shape because of the PM’s personal interest even if similar recommendations for lateral entry had been made in earlier governments.

Though it is difficult to predict whether this policy will continue in the future with the same intensity, a large part of it will depend on the priorities set and evaluation of their effectiveness by the government. It's worth noting that lateral entry is just one part of civil service reforms, there may be other changes in civil services recruitment and training as well.

Government insiders, however, say India is yet to see a major rollout of a larger plan to employ more private professionals in the system, which could happen after the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.