More than 2,800 posts across India’s top civil services remain vacant, with roughly one in five positions unfilled in the Indian Administrative Service, Indian Police Service, and Indian Forest Service, the government informed Parliament.
The data was shared in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha by Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh, responding to a question from John Brittas of the Communist Party of India (Marxist).
According to the figures tabled, the Indian Administrative Service has a sanctioned strength of 6,858 officers, of which 5,457 are currently in position. This leaves 1,401 vacancies, accounting for about 20.4 percent of the total sanctioned posts.
The Indian Police Service faces 884 vacancies.
Against a sanctioned strength of 4,984 officers, only 4,100 are in service, translating to a shortfall of around 17.7 percent.
In the Indian Forest Service, 549 posts remain vacant. The service has a sanctioned strength of 3,193 officers, with 2,644 currently in position, leaving about 17.2 percent of posts unfilled.
The data also revealed significant variations across cadres. The AGMUT cadre, which covers states such as Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, and Mizoram, along with Union Territories including Delhi, reported the highest number of vacancies at 267. Uttar Pradesh followed with 215 vacant posts.
The government said recruitment to the three All India Services is carried out annually through the Civil Services Examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission. It added that vacancies persist due to retirements, promotions, attrition, and periodic increases in sanctioned strength, and that cadre strength and recruitment processes are reviewed from time to time to address shortages.