LAHORE: Introducing certain amendments to it at a couple of high-level meetings, the federal government has finally finalised new Rotation Policy 2019 for transfers and postings of the officers of all-Pakistan services — the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS) and the Police Service of Pakistan (PSP).

It has dispatched the policy draft to the chief secretaries and provincial police officers of all the four provinces, besides those of Gilgit Baltistan before sending recommendations to the prime minister for final approval.

“The Rotation Policy 2019 shall come into effect immediately and Rotation Policy, 2000 — and all-amendments made therein shall lapse on the date of notification of this policy”, reads the draft a copy which is available with Dawn.

According to the draft Rotation Policy 2019, the first allocation of every PAS/PSP officer shall invariably be made outside the province of his/her domicile where he/she shall be required to serve until his promotion to BS-18 or for five years starting from the date he/she joins the provincial government/Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) as an assistant commissioner (AC) or assistant superintendent of police (ASP), provided that the ICT shall be considered part of Punjab, for the officers domiciled therein, for the purposes of first allocation under the policy.

Earlier, the essential out-of-province (of domicile) service period for these officers was two and a half years.

BS-20 officers won’t be allowed more than 10 years in a province

It says that no transfer of an officer, on any ground to any provincial government/ICT shall be allowed until his/her promotion or completion of five years of service, whichever is earlier.

However, an officer may opt to complete five years in the province of first allocation, despite promotion to BS-18, for the purpose of eligibility for promotion to BS-19.

The policy provisions regarding eligibility for promotion to BS-19 shall apply to the officers appearing in the CSS examination after the notification of the same.

As per the policy draft, no PAS/PSP officer in BS-20 and below shall be allowed to serve in a provincial or federal government continuously for more than 10 years.

“The officers who have served in any provincial government or the federal government for a continuous period of not less than ten (10) years shall be transferred to the federal government or other provinces, as the case may be, in public interest”, reads the draft.

There placements shall be made on the principle of “Least Rotated, Transferred First”, to serve in the government with the highest shortage ratio.

Once an officer has been thus compulsorily rotated, he/she shall not return to the government of his/ her previous ten-year posting, before completing two years at stations of his/ her posting situated outside of the geographical limits of government of his/ her 10-year posting. Provided that period spent on EOL/earned leave/study leave/OSD/training/deputation/foreign posting shall not be counted towards these two years.

The officers who have served continuously for 10 years or more in the governments shall be relocated to other governments by 30th June, 2019.

Service on a post of directing staff in National School of Public Policy (NSPP), Civil Service Academy (CSA) and National Police Academy (NPA) shall not be counted towards 10 years continuous service within geographical limits of a government, despite the training institution’s location within its geographical limits.

Rationalisation of shortage ratios among governments

Profiles of PAS/PSP officers shall be prepared on the basis of total period they have spent in a government. The existing principle of “Least Rotated, Transferred First” shall be the governing principle for placement of the PAS/PSP officers in various governments.

The grade-wise lists of the least rotated officers shall be prepared by the Establishment Division twice a year in the months of January and July each year.

The shortage in all governments viz-a-viz sanctioned posts in each grade shall also be prepared by the Establishment Division in January and July.

The number of officers required in each government for equalising the shortage ratio in a grade shall also be worked out.

The least rotated officers shall be transferred to the provinces with the highest shortages after taking their preferences.

In case, sufficient number of officers are not available for rotation and posting in the ‘governments of higher shortage’ under the 10-year stipulation, the Establishment Division shall rotate PAS/PSP officers, who have had the highest lengths of stay within a government among their peers in the same grade, even if it is less than 10 years, calculated in the manner as described-above.

Supportive provisions

For the purpose of eligibility to promotion to BS-19, a service of at least five years out of the province of domicile shall be compulsory for every officer. This condition, however, shall be applicable to the batches which are inducted in PAS/PSP through CSS examination after notification of these policy provisions.

An officer shall not be considered eligible for promotion to BS-21 by a Central Selection Board if he/she was serving in a government continuously for more than 10 years until he/she has been transferred out of that government and has served for at least one year in another government outside the geographical limits of the government of 10 or more years stay.This provision, however, shall become applicable after two years from the date of notification of this Rotation Policy.

The officers serving in a government continuously for 10 years shall not be eligible for nomination to mandatory and foreign trainings, study leave, EOL, and long leave unless their continuous stay is broken in manner prescribed by these policy provisions.

The wedlock policy shall not apply to PAS/PSP officers in relaxation of rotation policy: instead, spouses of these officers shall be posted closest to thir places of posting.

In the cases where both the spouses are from PAS/PSP, the spouse from comparatively low shortage government shall be offered to be transferred to the other spouse’s government of posting.

No exemption from this policy shall be given on the basis of gender to single or married female officers.

As per the draft policy, the officers shall be allowed to retain at least one government accommodation anywhere in the country for settling their families. One-room family suite accommodation shall be made readily available to the officers transferred to other provinces/federal government.

The postings/transfers of BS-21 officers shall be made by the Establishment Division after the prime minister’s approval as per the requests or requirements of federal and provincial governments, the draft reads.

Published in Dawn, January 28th, 2019