The Chief Secretary is the top-most executive official and senior-most civil servant of the state government. The Chief Secretary is the '' ex-officio'' head of the state Civil Services Board, the State Secretariat, the state cadre Indian Administrative Service and all civil services under the rules of business of the state government. The Chief Secretary acts as the principal advisor to the

chief minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...

on all matters of state administration. The Chief Secretary is an officer of the Indian Administrative Service. The Chief Secretary is the senior-most cadre post in the state administration, ranking 23rd on the Indian order of precedence. The Chief Secretary acts as an '' ex-officio'' secretary to the state cabinet, therefore called ''"Secretary to the Cabinet"''. The status of this post is equal to that of a Secretary to the Government of India.

History

The salary of Chief Secretary of

United Provinces of Agra and Oudh The United Provinces of Agra and Oudh was a province of India under the British Raj, which existed from 1902 to 1921; the official name was shortened by the Government of India Act 1935 to United Provinces (UP), by which the province had been ...

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

and

Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...

was fixed and was same to

Joint Secretary to Government of India Joint Secretary to Government of India (often abbreviated as JS, GoI or Union Joint Secretary or Joint Secretary to Union of India) is a post under the Central Staffing Scheme and the third highest non-political executive rank in Government of I ...

during the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi language, Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Q ...

. As per Warrant or Precedence of 1905, Secretary to Government of India was listed together with

and was ranked above the rank of Chief Secretary.

States

Chief Secretaries are members of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) who are the administrative head of state governments. A Chief Secretary functions as the central point of interdepartmental coordination at the departmental level and is classified as being in the Apex Grade. Chief Secretary is considered to be 'a linchpin' in the administration. Chief Secretary of the state also acts as the ''ex-officio'' Chairman of the State Civil Service Board, which recommends transfer/postings of officers of All India Services and State Civil Services in the state. Traditionally, the most senior IAS officer within a state is chosen as the Chief Secretary; however, there are exceptions. Chief Secretaries are assisted by Additional Chief Secretaries or Special Chief Secretaries, depending on the state, and Principal Secretaries, who are the administrative heads of departments they are assigned to. Chief Secretaries are chosen by the state's

Chief Minister A chief minister is an elected or appointed head of government of – in most instances – a sub-national entity, for instance an administrative subdivision or federal constituent entity. Examples include a state (and sometimes a union terri ...

. State Chief Secretaries are IAS officers generally equivalent in rank to a Secretary to Government of India and are placed 23rd on Indian Order of Precedence. The post of Chief Secretary of a State Government is equivalent to Vice Chief of the Army Staff/Commanders and officers in the rank of full

General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". O ...

and its equivalents in the Indian Armed Forces, and are listed as such in the

Order of Precedence An order of precedence is a sequential hierarchy of nominal importance and can be applied to individuals, groups, or organizations. Most often it is used in the context of people by many organizations and governments, for very formal and state o ...

Union territories

In the union territories, which are governed by

Administrators Administrator or admin may refer to: Job roles Computing and internet * Database administrator, a person who is responsible for the environmental aspects of a database * Forum administrator, one who oversees discussions on an Internet forum * N ...

, Chief Secretaries are absent. In these territories an Adviser to the Administrator is appointed by the Union Government. However, the union territories of

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders wi ...

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...

and Puducherry, which have been granted partial statehood, do have Chief Secretaries. In

and Puducherry, the Chief Minister chooses the Chief Secretary and is appointed by the Lieutenant Governor. Chief Secretaries and Advisers to the Administrators of Union territories, in general, are junior in rank compared to the Chief Secretaries of the States. The office bearers generally are of the rank

and its equivalents. However, in

and

Chandigarh Chandigarh () is a planned city in India. Chandigarh is bordered by the state of Punjab to the west and the south, and by the state of Haryana to the east. It constitutes the bulk of the Chandigarh Capital Region or Greater Chandigarh, which ...

, the topmost civil servant is either of the ranks of Secretary to Government of India and its equivalents or Additional Secretary to Government of India and its equivalents.

References

;''Notes''

Bibliography

* * {{Refend Civil Services of India Indian government officials State governments of India Indian Administrative Service officers

History

States

Union territories

See also

References

Bibliography