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The Pakistan Administrative Service, or PAS () (previously known as the District Management Group or DMG before 1 June 2012) is an elite cadre of the
Civil Services of Pakistan The Central Superior Services (CSS; or Civil Service) is a permanent elite civil service authority and the civil service that is responsible for running the bureaucratic operations and government secretariats and directorates of the Cabinet of ...
. The Pakistan Administrative Service over the years has emerged as the most consolidated and developed post-colonial institution in Pakistan, with the PAS officers of
Grade 22 Grade-22 (also referred to as BPS-22) is the highest attainable rank for a Civil Servant in Pakistan. Grade 22 is equal to a 4-star and 3-star rank of the Pakistan Armed Forces. With over five hundred thousand civil servants and bureaucrats in Pak ...
often seen as stronger than the federal government ministers. The service of PAS is generalist in nature and officers are assigned to different departments all across Pakistan during the course of their careers. Almost all of the country's highest-profile positions such as the
Federal Secretaries Federal or foederal (archaic) may refer to: Politics General *Federal monarchy, a federation of monarchies *Federation, or ''Federal state'' (federal system), a type of government characterized by both a central (federal) government and states or ...
, the provincial Chief Secretaries, and chairmen of top-heavy organizations like the
National Highway Authority The National Highway Authority (NHA; ) is a statutory body under the Ministry of Communications of Pakistan. History In 1978, the Government of Pakistan federalised five important inter-provincial roads and named them ''National Highways''. Th ...
,
Trading Corporation of Pakistan The Trading Corporation of Pakistan (TCP) () is a Pakistani state-owned commodity trading company, mainly responsible for export and import of commodities. It also issues tenders for export and import of agricultural products. TCP has its offices ...
and State Life Insurance Corporation usually belong to the Pakistan Administrative Service. Officers in this occupational group are recruited through a national competitive examination held once a year by the
Federal Public Service Commission The Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) () is a federal agency of Government of Pakistan that is responsible for recruiting civil servants and bureaucrats for Government of Pakistan. History The Public Service Commission was set up for ...
. Those selected for this group have to undergo a two-year training programme at the
Civil Services Academy Situated in Lahore, Pakistan, the Civil Services Academy Lahore is an academy for the training of young bureaucrats who are commissioned by the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) through a very competitive Central Superior Services exam, ...
(CSA) in
Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...
.


History

The
Indian Civil Service The Indian Civil Service (ICS), officially known as the Imperial Civil Service, was the higher civil service of the British Empire in India during British Raj, British rule in the period between 1858 and 1947. Its members ruled over more than 3 ...
(ICS)—also known once as
Imperial Civil Service The Indian Civil Service (ICS), officially known as the Imperial Civil Service, was the higher civil service of the British Empire in India during British rule in the period between 1858 and 1947. Its members ruled over more than 300 million p ...
in
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...
, predecessor of the Civil Service of Pakistan and District Management Group—was established by the British to colonize India and perpetuate the
British Raj The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...
. After Indian independence in 1947, the Indian Civil Service component ceded to Pakistan was renamed the
Civil Service of Pakistan The Central Superior Services (CSS; or Civil Service) is a permanent elite civil service authority and the civil service that is responsible for running the bureaucratic operations and government secretariats and directorates of the Cabinet of ...
. In 1954, an agreement was reached between the Governor General of Pakistan and the governors of the provinces to constitute an All-Pakistan service valid throughout Pakistan. Later under the administrative reforms of 1973, the name of Civil Service of Pakistan was changed to District Management Group, which became one of thirteen occupational groups under the All-Pakistan Unified Groups (APUG). Since 1973, each year a new batch of officers undergo a "Common Training Programme" (CTP) which includes officers of thirteen occupational groups at the
Civil Services Academy Situated in Lahore, Pakistan, the Civil Services Academy Lahore is an academy for the training of young bureaucrats who are commissioned by the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) through a very competitive Central Superior Services exam, ...
.


Appointments of PAS Officers

After completing initial training and probation at the Civil Services Academy, officers are posted in field offices throughout Pakistan on Basic Pay Scale (BPS)-17 grade appointments. Officers of the rank of Captains (within 3 to 6 years' service) and equivalents from
defense services Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense indust ...
are also inducted (in three occupational groups; P.A.S, Police and Foreign Services) on allocated quota after recommendations of Chairman Federal Public Service Commission. This quota was introduced by President General Zia ul Haq through an infamous amendment to the law primarily to have domination of military over civil bureaucracy and is still in vogue. Officers of PAS are first appointed typically as Assistant Commissioners of sub-divisions. They will simultaneously be charged with the responsibilities of Assistant Commissioners of Sub-Divisional level. The Basic Pay Scales (BPS grades) are enumerated (in order of increasing responsibility) such as:


Post-devolution (2001) scenario

Post devolution, local government ordinance PLGO 2001. The Divisional Governments/Administrative Divisions were abolished by the then President Pervaiz Musharraf in 2001 and hence the office of Divisional Commissioner was abolished. The Office of
Deputy Commissioner A deputy commissioner is a police, income tax or administrative official in many countries. The rank is commonplace in police forces of Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, usually ranking below the Commissioner. Australia In all Aust ...
was upgraded/up scaled and designated as District Coordination Officer DCO and was deprived of the powers of District Magistrate. However, in 2008, after the presidency of General Musharraf, provincial governments of Pakistan again established the office of Divisional Commissioner. In 2011 and 2017, the term DCO was also re named as
Deputy Commissioner A deputy commissioner is a police, income tax or administrative official in many countries. The rank is commonplace in police forces of Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, usually ranking below the Commissioner. Australia In all Aust ...
in Sindh and Punjab provinces respectively and District Magistracy continues to be exercised in the
federal capital A federal capital is a political entity, often a municipality or capital (political), capital city, that serves as the Seat of government, seat of the federal government. A federal capital is typically a city that physically encompasses the offices ...
; however, the institution of the office of the Deputy Commissioner has been deprived of its previously held judicial powers elsewhere in the country.


Notable PAS officers

*
Ghulam Ishaq Khan Ghulam Ishaq Khan (20 January 1915 – 27 October 2006), commonly known by his initials GIK, was a Pakistani bureaucrat, politician and statesman who served as the seventh President of Pakistan from 1988 to 1993. He previously served as Chairm ...
*
Chaudhry Muhammad Ali Chaudhri Muhammad Ali (15 July 1905 – 2 December 1982) was a Pakistani politician and statesman who served as the fourth prime minister of Pakistan from 1955 until his resignation in 1956. His government transitioned Pakistan from a British ...
*
Farooq Leghari Farooq Ahmad Khan Leghari (; 29 May 194020 October 2010) was a Pakistani politician who served as the eighth president of Pakistan from 14 November 1993 until resigning on 2 December 1997. He was the first Baloch to be elected as President. ...
*
Qudrat Ullah Shahab Qudrat Ullah Shahab (or Qudratullah Shahab, ; 26 February 191724 July 1986) was an eminent Urdu writer, civil servant and diplomat from Pakistan. Shahab holds the distinction of having served as the Principal Secretary to the Presid ...
* Shehzad Arbab * Raja Muhammad Abbas * Muhammad Arif Azim *
Kamran Rasool Kamran Rasool (born 9 April 1948) is a retired Pakistani civil servant belonging to the Pakistan Administrative Service who served in BPS-22 grade as the Cabinet Secretary of Pakistan, Chief Secretary Punjab and later on as the Defence Secretar ...
*
Nargis Sethi Nargis Sethi () is a retired Pakistani civil service officer of the Pakistan Administrative Service who served in BPS-22 grade as the Cabinet Secretary of Pakistan and Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister of Pakistan. Other heavyweight ...
*
Shahjehan Syed Karim Shahjehan Syed Karim (1933–2017) was a Pakistani civil servant who served as the Chief Secretary of Sindh, chief secretary of Sindh in 1994. He also founded the Institute of Business Management. Early life and education Syed Karim was born in ...
* Nasir Mahmood Khosa * Tasneem Noorani *
Syed Darbar Ali Shah Syed Darbar Ali Shah (21 July 1923 – 20 June 1996) was a Pakistani civil servant who served as a Central Superior Services officer. He held many important administrative positions, including that of Commissioner Karachi during the 1965 War be ...
* Shahid Aziz Siddiqi * Maroof Afzal * Rizwan Ahmed *
Naveed Kamran Baloch Naveed Kamran Baloch is a retired Pakistani civil servant who served in BPS-22 grade at the top bureaucratic offices of Cabinet Secretary and Finance Secretary of Pakistan. Baloch belonged to the Pakistan Administrative Service and was promoted ...
*
Sardar Ahmad Nawaz Sukhera Sardar Ahmad Nawaz Sukhera is a retired Pakistani civil servant who served in BPS-22 grade, the highest attainable rank for a serving officer, as the Cabinet Secretary of Pakistan. Sukhera did his bachelor's degree in economics from the London ...
*
Azam Suleman Khan Maj (r) Azam Suleman Khan () is a retired Pakistani civil servant who served as the Provincial Ombudsman of Punjab. He previously served in BPS-22 grade as the Interior Secretary of Pakistan, Chief Secretary Punjab and as Chief Secretary Sindh ...
* Kamran Lashari * Mir Ahmed Bakhsh Lehri * Shoaib Mir Memon *
Mumtaz Ali Shah Mumtaz Ali Shah is a retired Pakistani civil servant who served in BPS-22 grade as the Maritime Secretary of Pakistan and Chief Secretary Sindh. Hailing from Sindh, Shah joined the Pakistan Administrative Service after passing the Central Supe ...
* Allah Bakhsh Malik * Iqbal Hussain Durrani * Babar Yaqoob Fateh Muhammad * Syed Abu Ahmad Akif *
Jawad Rafique Malik Jawad Rafique Malik (Urdu: جواد رفیق ملک) is a retired officer of Pakistani civil service who served in BPS-22 grade as Chief Secretary Punjab and Federal Secretary of the Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit-Baltistan Division. Hailing from L ...
*
Tariq Bajwa Tariq Bajwa is a retired Pakistani civil servant who served as the Finance Secretary and Economic Affairs Secretary of Pakistan. Bajwa also served as the 19th Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan and the 20th Chairman of the Federal Board o ...
*
Fawad Hasan Fawad Fawad Hasan Fawad () is a Pakistani public policy practitioner, former civil servant who served in BPS-22 grade as the Principal Secretary to three Prime Ministers Imran Khan, Nawaz Sharif, and Shahid Khaqan Abbasi; and later as caretaker Fe ...
* Muhammad Sualeh Ahmad Faruqi *
Sikandar Sultan Raja Sikandar Sultan Raja is a retired Pakistani civil servant who is the current Chief Election Commissioner of Pakistan since January 2020 till date. He is the son-in-law of the former Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister of Pakistan and Chief ...
* Fazal Abbas Maken * Agha Jan Akhtar * Masood Khaddarposh *
Aftab Ghulam Nabi Kazi Aftab Ghulam Nabi Kazi (; 6 November 1919 – 9 August 2016) , also known as AGN Kazi, was a Pakistani civil servant and a bureaucrat during the Cold War and during the post cold war. Kazi was born in Sindh, Bombay Presidency, in 1919 to an a ...
*
Roedad Khan Roedad Khan (28 September 1923 – 21 April 2024) was a Pakistani politician and civil servant. He was a leading figure in Pakistan from the start to the end of the Cold War. During his long career, Khan was one of the most senior civil servant ...
* Ishrat Hussain * Masood Mufti * Mustafa Zaidi * Aminullah chaudhry * Usman Ali Isani * Rabiya Javeri Agha * Naseer Ahmad * Syed Tanveer Abbas Jafri


See also

*
Federal Secretary The Federal Secretary (also referred to as the Secretary to the Government of Pakistan) is the highest-ranking position in the Government of Pakistan, occupied by the most senior civil servant in a specific ministry or division. The secretary is t ...
*
Grade 22 Grade-22 (also referred to as BPS-22) is the highest attainable rank for a Civil Servant in Pakistan. Grade 22 is equal to a 4-star and 3-star rank of the Pakistan Armed Forces. With over five hundred thousand civil servants and bureaucrats in Pak ...
* Chief Secretary (Pakistan) *
Deputy Commissioner A deputy commissioner is a police, income tax or administrative official in many countries. The rank is commonplace in police forces of Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, usually ranking below the Commissioner. Australia In all Aust ...
*
List of serving Generals of the Pakistan Army This is the list of serving officers in the Pakistan Army. At present the Army has one field marshal, one general, 29 Lieutenant general (Pakistan), lieutenant generals (including one from Army Medical Corps (Pakistan), Army Medical Corps) a ...
*
Law enforcement in Pakistan Law enforcement in Pakistan () is one of the three main components of the criminal justice system of Pakistan, alongside the judiciary and the prisons. The country has a mix of federal, provincial and territorial police forces with both general ...
* Government employees in Pakistan


References


External links


Federal Public Service Commission - homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pakistan Administrative Service Civil service of Pakistan Pakistan federal departments and agencies