About IES

• The service is headed by the Chief Economic Adviser and comprises of officers in the hierarchy starting from the Junior Time Scale to the Apex Scale.
• Officers are recruited to the Junior Time Scale through the All- India open competitive Indian Economic Service Examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission and officers of feeder cadres inducted into the Junior Time Scale through promotion. At the entry grade of IES i.e. Junior Time Scale (Grade-IV), 60 per cent of the posts are filled through direct recruitment and the remaining 40 per cent by promotion of feeder post holders. The higher scales are then filled through promotions.
• The management of the service is on the basis of the service rules called the IES Rules, first notified in 1961. The service rules of 1961 have since been superseded by the comprehensively revised IES Rules 2008, which were notified on 6.6.2008. These Service Rules are amended from time to time in accordance with the instructions of the Government. Latest Amendment to the Rules has been notified on 18th February, 2011 following the Cabinet approval to the revised cadre structure of the service.
• The Cadre strength of IES was earlier periodically reviewed by the IES Board, with the final Cadre structure of the service approved by the Cabinet. Reviews of the IES Cadre were earlier undertaken in 1991, 2000, 2005 and 2011. The latest review of the service was conducted in 2023, with the Cabinet approving the revised Cadre structure on 28.06.2023. Pursuant to this, the sanctioned strength of the IES Cadre is 538, consisting of 488 duty posts and 50 leave reserves.

Authorized Strength of the various grades in the IES

** Note –The number of duty posts in NFSG shall be restricted to thirty percent of the Senior Duty Posts in the Cadre, that is, posts in Pay Bands with Level 11and above.