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There has been a constant demand for the government to take the initiative to fill vacant government positions in the country. Regardless of the party in power, this has become a political issue from time to time. The Ministry of Personnel, which functions under the Prime Minister, has shared data on the country's three most prestigious All India Services. In a written reply to the Rajya Sabha, Dr. Jitendra Singh, Minister of State for Personnel, provided information on vacant positions in the three All India Services: the IAS, IPS, and IFS (Indian Forest Service).

19% of IAS positions are vacant.
The reply stated that 2,834 positions are currently vacant in these three services. This includes 1,300 IAS positions, 505 IPS positions, and 1,029 IFS positions. According to the government, the total sanctioned IAS positions, including those of the central government and various states and union territories, currently stand at 6,877, of which only 5,577 positions are currently filled. This means that approximately 19% of IAS posts are vacant. The total sanctioned IPS posts are 5,099, while only 4,594 are filled. Similarly, only 2,164 IFS posts are filled against a total sanctioned 3,193.

Uttar Pradesh has a sanctioned IAS post strength of 652, with a maximum of 571 officers.

Madhya Pradesh has 391 IAS officers working against a sanctioned 459.

Maharashtra has 359 officers working against a sanctioned 435.

63 Officers Appointed Through Lateral Entry Rules
In response to another question, the government stated that 63 officers have been appointed through the Lateral Entry Rules since 2018. The government stated that lateral entry recruitment has been done for positions such as Joint Secretary, Director, and Deputy Director. The highest number of these appointments has been made in various departments of the Ministry of Finance.

Generally, officers from the IAS or other civil service cadres are appointed to the post of Joint Secretary, but in the last few years, appointments have also been made through lateral entry. While officers from the IAS or other cadres of the Central Civil Service are appointed through the Civil Services Examination, under lateral entry, experts are appointed without the Civil Services Examination. There have been frequent allegations that reservation rules are not enforced in lateral entry.

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