Port Blair, July 13: The Non-Gazetted Govt. Officers’ Association, Andaman and Nicobar Islands in a letter addressed to the Joint Secretary (UT), Ministry of Home Affairs has demanded the bifurcation of 50% promotion quota of DANICS and allotting the rightful percentage for the feeder cadres of Andaman & Nicobar Islands so that the stagnated feeder cadre officials can be promoted to DANICS Entry Grade.

The letter states that since Andaman & Nicobar Islands does not have a separate State Civil Service like the one in UT of Puducherry, Goa and other States. Delhi & Andaman & Nicobar Islands Civil Services (DANICS) is the common State Civil Service cadre for the NCT of Delhi and UT of Andaman & Nicobar Islands.   50% of the officers to the DANICS are recruited by the UPSC through the Civil Service Examination and the remaining 50% posts are filled up through promotion from among the feeder cadre posts. The Association pointed that during the last 20 years, no officer from the feeder cadres of the A & N Administration which includes Tehsildar, BDO, Asst. Registrar of Cooperative Societies, Office Superintendents etc. has been inducted into DANICS Entry Grade while all the posts of DANICS Entry Grade in the A&N Administration are filled up by officers (direct recruit and inducted) from Delhi.  The General Secretary drew attention that there are 21 feeder cadre services to DANICS as per existing Recruitment Rules, but it has been noticed that undue preference is given to only one feeder cadre i.e. DASS Gr. I and other cadres from UTs like Andaman & Nicobar Islands are routinely being ignored.

The Association also raised concern over the urgent need to restructure the 50% promotion quota to DANICS and opined that the 50% quota must be bifurcated among the concerned union territories so that officers from the feeder cadre of Andaman & Nicobar Islands can be considered for promotion/induction into DANICS.

In the letter it was also demanded to upgrade the Pay Scales of all the four feeder cadre of these Islands and to consider the request for upgradation of scale of pay of LGCs, HGCs, Head Clerk, Office Superintendents etc. at par with the posts in Delhi Administrative Subordinate Services (DASS). The Association also requested the Govt. of India to appoint atleast 15 feeder cadre officials from A&N Administration to DANICS on adhoc basis immediately pending the bifurcation of the promotion quota and regular DPC, etc.