Centre Asks UPSC To Withdraw Lateral Entry Advertisement After Opposition Criticised It For Not Following Reservation Requirements

The Central government on Tuesday (20 August) instructed the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to withdraw its recent advertisement for lateral entry into the bureaucracy, PTI reported.

The UPSC had announced 45 openings for lateral entry at the joint secretary and director level posts at various ministries in the Central government, with the application deadline set for 17 September.

The move was vehemently opposed by the Opposition parties like Congress, Samajwadi Party (SP) and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and it also faced resistance from the BJP allies.

While the Janata Dal (United) and Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) opposed the move, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) supported it, arguing that lateral entry into the bureaucracy could enhance governance quality.

UPSC has now been asked to withdraw the advertisement just three days after the government had announced openings for "talented and motivated Indian nationals for Lateral Recruitment".

The 10 vacancies for joint secretary positions included roles such as Joint Secretary for Digital Economy, FinTech, Cyber Security, and Investment in the Ministry of Finance, as well as Joint Secretary (Policy and Plan) for the National Disaster Management Authority under the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Opposition leaders criticised the policy for excluding reservations for Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Other Backward Classes (OBC) candidates and called it against the Constitution.