Indian Foreign Service

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Indian Foreign Service (IFS)

Service Overview

Formed October 9, 1946

Headquarters South Block, New Delhi

Country India

Training Ground Foreign Service Institute, New Delhi

Field of

Operation

Controlling Ministry of External Affairs

Authority

Legal personality Governmental: Government Services

General Nature Diplomacy & Foreign policy

Economic diplomacy

Trade Relations

Defence Diplomacy

Cultural diplomacy

Consular Services

Public diplomacy

Intergovernmental organization

Preceding Indian Civil Service

 Service

Cadre Size 2700 members (Group A - 770; Group B -

1930)[1]

Service Chief

Foreign Vijay Keshav Gokhale, IFS

Secretary

Head of the Civil Services

Cabinet Rajiv Gauba, IAS

Secretary

The Indian Foreign Service (IFS) is the administrative diplomatic[1] civil service under Group A[2] and
Group B[3] of the Central Civil Services of the executive branch of the Government of India.[4] It is a
Central Civil service as Foreign policy is the subject matter and prerogative of Union
Government.[5] The Ambassador, High Commissioner, Consul General, Permanent Representative
of India to the United Nations and Foreign Secretary are some of the offices held by the members of
this service.[1]
The service is entrusted to conduct diplomacy and manage foreign relations of India.[1] It is the body
of career diplomats serving in more than 162 Indian Diplomatic Missions and International
Organisations around the world. In addition, they serve at the headquarters of the Ministry of
External affairs in Delhi and the Prime Minister's Office.[6] They also head the Regional Passport
Offices throughout the country and hold positions in the President's Secretariat and several
ministries on deputation. Foreign Secretary of India is the administrative head of the Indian Foreign
Service.
IFS was created by the Government of India in October 1946 through a Cabinet note[7] but its roots
can be traced back to the British Raj when the Foreign Department was created to conduct business
with the "Foreign European Powers".[8] IFS Day is celebrated on October 9 every year since 2011 to
commemorate the day the Indian Cabinet created the IFS.[7]
Officers of the IFS are now recruited by the Government of India on the recommendation of
the Union Public Service Commission. Previous to 1948, some were appointed directly by the then
Prime Minister and included former native rulers of India who had integrated their provinces into
India apart from known persons like Mohammed Yunus. Fresh recruits to the IFS are trained at
the Foreign Service Institute (FSI) after a brief foundation course at the Lal Bahadur Shastri National
Academy of Administration, Mussoorie.[9]

Contents

 1History
 2Selection
 3Training
 4Functions
 5Career and rank structure
 6Major concerns and Reforms
o 6.1Corruption
o 6.2Foreign Service cadre discrimination
 7Notable IFS Officers
 8References
 9External links

History[edit]

South Block The HQ of Ministry of External Affairs, Prime Minister's Office and Defence Ministry in New Delhi

Negotiating exercises like this are routine and vital part of Indian diplomats' job profile. Here, US
President Obama and Indian Prime Minister Modi are with their diplomats in an expanded bilateral meeting
at Hyderabad House, New Delhi.

On 13 September 1783, the board of directors of the East India Company passed
a resolution at Fort William, Calcutta (now Kolkata), to create a department, which could help
"relieve the pressure" on the Warren Hastings administration in conducting its "secret and political
business."[1] Although established by the Company, the Indian Foreign Department conducted
business with foreign European powers.[1] From the very beginning, a distinction was maintained
between the foreign and political functions of the Foreign Department; relations with all "Asiatic
powers" (including native princely states) were treated as political, while relations with European
powers were treated as foreign.[10]
In 1843, the Governor-General of India, Edward Law, 1st Earl of Ellenborough carried out
administrative reforms, organizing the Secretariat of the Government into four departments: Foreign,
Home, Finance, and Military. Each was headed by a secretary-level officer. The Foreign Department
Secretary was entrusted with the "conduct of all correspondence belonging to the external and
internal diplomatic relations of the government."[1]
The Government of India Act 1935 attempted to delineate more clearly functions of the foreign and
political wings of the Foreign Department, it was soon realized that it was administratively imperative
to completely bifurcate the department. Consequently, the External Affairs Department was set up
separately under the direct charge of the Governor-General.
The idea of establishing a separate diplomatic service to handle the external activities of the
Government of India originated from a note dated 30 September 1944, recorded by Lieutenant-
General T. J. Hutton, the Secretary of the Planning and Development Department.[1] When this note
was referred to the Department of External Affairs for comments, Olaf Caroe, the Foreign Secretary,
recorded his comments in an exhaustive note detailing the scope, composition and functions of the
proposed service. Caroe pointed out that as India emerged as autonomous, it was imperative to
build up a system of representation abroad that would be in complete harmony with the objectives of
the future government.[1]
On 9 October 1946,[11] on the eve of Indian independence, the Indian government established the
Indian Foreign Service for India's diplomatic, consular and commercial representation overseas.
With independence, there was a near-complete transition of the Foreign and Political Department
into what then became the new Ministry of External Affairs and Commonwealth Relations.