Many promotee IAS officers from Karnataka reluctant to attend induction training at Mussoorie

Many officers promoted from State Civil Service (Karnataka Administrative Service and others) grade to Indian Administrative Service (IAS) grade seem to be reluctant to attend the Induction Training Programme (ITP) at Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA), Mussoorie.

A total of 26 promotee IAS officers from the State have been nominated for the ITP-2026. However, only one officer is going for ITP, while the remaining 25 have not even submitted a request to the government for permission to go. Seven officers who were promoted in 2016 have not attended the induction programme to this day.

The 128th ITP will be held from February 2, 2026, to March 13, 2026. The duration of the course will be six weeks, comprising four weeks of in-house training and two week of study tour.

“All the officers on the list sent by LBSNAA were asked to participate in the ITP. However, only one officer has taken permission from the government and is going,” said Jagadeesha K.G., Secretary, Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms (DPAR).

Among 26 officers from Karnataka, seven officers were promoted in 2016, two in 2018, four in 2019, eight in 2020 batch, three in 2021 and two in 2022.

How it is filled

For IAS, about 60% of the posts are filled through Civil Services Examination (CSE) conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). About 36% is filled by State Civil Service (SCS) and 4% of the Non-SCS officers are those who are promoted to IAS. Officers who have completed at least eight years of service in SCS are eligible for promotion.

However, ITP is mandatory training for promotee officers (SCS and Non-SCS Officers) to be confirmed into IAS as per IAS (Probation) Rules, 1954.

ITP is organised by the Ministry of Personnel, public Grievances and pension Department of Personnel and Training (Training Division) at LBSNAA, Mussoorie for those who have been directly recruited to IAS and those who have been promoted from SCS.

“It is compulsory for officers of the SCS who have been promoted to the IAS to undergo ITP. The aim of the programme is to equip the officers with an all-India perspective of governance issues and to develop certain core skills and attitudes required for administrators in the current context of public management,” reads the LBSNAA letter.

A total of 547 officers from across the country, including 26 officers from Karnataka, have been nominated for ITP this year. “Around 150 officers from different States are expected to participate in this training programme on first-come-first-serve basis. This is a one-time opportunity for these officers who have been inducted into IAS to undergo this training,” stated letter.

The reason

A senior IAS officer attributed reluctance to go to ITP to paranoia that they will lose their posts while they are away.

“After being promoted to IAS, many officers get good posts. They do not want to leave those posts. ITP lasts for about one and a half months. Most officers do not go for ITP as they are worried that the government may transfer someone else to that post during this gap,” he said.

“Many promotee IAS officers in the State have retired without attending ITP. Since ITP is mandatory for IAS officers and a confirmation notification is issued only after they complete training, in reality, many of the promotees are in reality not IAS officers at all,” he stated. He added that their posts remain intact as long as they remain within the State and do not go for any Central deputation.