Explained | Are Arunachal and Ladakh ‘punishment’ postings for bureaucrats? 

People in these two regions, marked ‘hard areas’ according to the 2016 guidelines for transfer or posting of IAS and IPS officers of the joint AGMUT cadre, resent being seen as punishment destinations  

The story so far: Bureaucrat couple Sanjeev Khirwar and Rinju Dhugga, accused of forcing athletes at a stadium in Delhi to wind up their training early in order to walk their dog, were shunted out of Delhi. The Ministry of Home Affairs transferred the former to Ladakh and the latter to Arunachal Pradesh. The transfer of the duo – both 1994-batch Indian Administrate Service officers of the joint AGMUT (Arunachal, Goa, Mizoram and Union Territories) cadre – was perceived as ‘punishment posting’, triggering resentment that the country’s northernmost and north-easternmost regions are treated as dumping grounds for errant officers.  

How is action taken against errant civil servants?  

Article 311 of the Constitution of India safeguards civil servants against any arbitrary dismissal from their posts and helps them respond to charges in an inquiry against them. Disciplinary action against an officer found errant may include demotion, suspension or transfer. The authority initiating disciplinary proceedings depends on whether the civil servant is posted in a State or is on Central deputation. Factors such as domicile, rank and vacancies in his or her home State decides whether a civil servant is assigned a ‘home cadre’ or a different State by the Department of Personnel and Training. The State government where an errant bureaucrat is posted may prescribe suspension or transfer from that State. But such a civil servant, according to an amended set of rules in 2015, cannot remain suspended for more than a week unless the Centre allows it. A State government cannot take action in matters initiated by the Centre against bureaucrats on Central deputation. For an officer of the joint AGMUT cadre, transfer entails posting to any of the States or Union Territories (UTs) under this cadre. In January 2021, the Jammu and Kashmir cadre was merged with the AGMUT cadre after the bifurcation of the erstwhile State into the UTs of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.  

What is a ‘punishment posting’?  

Perception makes an errant officer’s transfer from “happening” places such as Delhi or Chandigarh to a not so politically or administratively endowed region a ‘punishment posting’. The guidelines for transfer/posting of IAS/IPS officers of the joint AGMUT cadre, 2016, classifies the area of operation of a civil servant into ‘regular’ (category A) and ‘hard’ (category B). The States and UTs under the first category are Delhi, Chandigarh, Goa, Puducherry, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and Daman and Diu. Those under the second category are Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Lakshadweep, and Andaman and Nicobar Islands with Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh added in January 2022. The number of categories was reduced from three as the tendency of officers, the guidelines say, is generally to stick to Delhi or at the most prefer to serve in ‘soft’ areas. Officers posted in the ‘hard areas’ are given some additional incentives such as hardship allowance and 40 days of leave in a year instead of 30 days for those in ‘regular areas’.  

How do the ‘hard areas’ take certain bureaucratic postings?  

Opinions differ. There is a general consensus that geography, communication bottlenecks, cultural and linguistic hurdles make places such as Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Ladakh ‘hard’. Some of those transferred take it as a punishment posting. Vijaya Tahilramani was said to have resigned as the Chief Justice of the Madras High Court when she was transferred to the High Court of Meghalaya in 2019. IAS officer Kashish Mittal also quit that year after he was transferred from NITI Aayog in Delhi to Arunachal Pradesh. Many in the ‘hard areas’ resent being seen as a dumping ground for errant officers who “may harbour anger and not perform for their places of posting”. A few believe that the Centre does errant civil servants a favour by transferring them out of a pollution-battling Delhi to far-flung areas with cleaner air and water, a beautiful landscape and hospitable people. They also cite special allowances for officers on posting in difficult areas and the permission to retain their official accommodation in their selected place of residence, usually Delhi. But AGMUT officers say the percentage of special allowances they get for serving in ‘hard areas’ is the same as other employees, even locals, in Central government establishments. “We do get to retain residence for families that stay back but we have to pay three times the licence fee for it,” an AGMUT officer said. Punishment, she added, may not be the right word for transfers in unusual circumstances because an AGMUT officer is expected to serve in any of the States or UTs under the cadre.