BCS cadre service
Friday, 20 April 2012
The implementation of government policies and projects is the duty of the Bangladesh Civil Service, a corps of trained administrators who form the nation's most influential group of civilians. The importance of the bureaucracy dates back to the colonial period, when the Indian Civil Service provided elite, educated, and dedicated body of professional administrators.
After the partition of India in 1947, when almost all administrative organs had to be created afresh, both the wings of Pakistan heavily relied on the managerial expertise of professional managers from the old Indian Civil Service. When Bangladesh became independent in 1971, the members of the civil service who joined the new nation brought with them the heritage of the colonial system. This heritage included administrative competence, which proved invaluable in running a young Bangladesh and an expectation by the elite of benefits and power.
In mid-1988 the civil service was composed of twenty-eight separate services. There were twenty grades, with promotion to higher grades based on merit and seniority, dependent on annual confidential reports filed by the individuals' supervisors. Recruitment to the civil service occurred through open competition within a quota system. Forty per cent of all new positions were allotted on the basis of merit; 30 per cent were reserved for the children of freedom fighters, and 20 per cent were allotted to women. The quotas were distributed among districts on the basis of population. Eligibility depended on an entrance examination, which included English, Bengali, and Mathematics sections, plus a personal interview. The Public Services Commission, as mandated by the Constitution, conducted the examinations for the civil service. The recruitment system attempted to eliminate the entrenched power of the old elites and to decrease the bias that favoured candidates from wealthy urban families. Although in the late 1980s it appeared that the new rules for recruitment and promotion might widen the backgrounds of civil service personnel and their supervisors, the older, senior members of the service continued to dominate the administration.
Since independence, membership in the civil service has been one of the most desirable careers in the country. For senior civil servants, benefits included government housing at a standard rate of base salary, transportation, medical care, and a pension. Equally important were the prestige and influence that accompanied an administrative career. For example, there was great power in directing a division of a ministerial secretariat in Dhaka, or one of its attached departments, subordinate offices, or autonomous bodies. Positions in the countryside were less popular, but the long tradition of bureaucratic elitism and subservience to government officials made the local administrator of the civil service an influential person in the community.
In the late 1980s, the centralisation of power and influence within the civil service remained one of the prime targets of administrative changes designed to decentralise politics and economic development throughout Bangladesh.
After Independence, the Bangladesh Public Service Commission was expected to promote national integration, from a social as well as a spatial point of view. Yet, despite the reservation policy, this elite body lacks representativeness. The partisanship of BCS officers has further reduced their efficiency as a binding force of the nation.
The rural touch that brings some romanticism to civil services with successful candidates springing up from remote villages and poor economic and deprived social backgrounds may be a thing of the past. Making English mandatory in the preliminary test and introduction of mathematical - based testing in the changes announced for Bangladesh Civil Services examinations certainly strengthen the view that it is loaded in favour of urban students. A vast majority of students in smaller towns see the changes as a big impediment to reach their goal while those hailing from urban areas argue that changes provided a level playing field.
We suggest that there will be no optional paper which will be replaced by an aptitude test. The question paper will have several segments including Comprehension, Interpersonal skills including communication skills, Logical reasoning and analytical ability, Decision making and problem solving, General mental ability, Basic numeracy and Data interpretation etc.
With environment taking centre stage, General Studies' paper will have environmental studies that would test candidates for their knowledge in environmental ecology, bio-diversity and climate change. The changes have paved way to an argument that those memorising subject-based text material and reproducing them in the test will now find it difficult. The modifications will provide a level-playing field to all candidates, as they have to answer the same set of questions. Will the new pattern increase burden on candidates? The opinion is strongly in favour of it. Earlier, candidates used to choose an optional subject right from preliminary and continue it till the main exam. But now they have to prepare for English and Maths related questions separately for prelims and start afresh for the optional subject after clearing preliminary. The number might increase now as employees and those working in the industry feel that they too have a chance with the introduction of English and mathematical-based questions. With State students known for their Maths prowess one can expect more aspirants and more successful candidates from the State in the near future. That will be the silver lining in Bangladeshi bureaucrat's competence, like truth, beauty and contact lenses, is in the eye of the beholder.
Gopal Sengupta
Canada
gopalsengupta@aol.com
After the partition of India in 1947, when almost all administrative organs had to be created afresh, both the wings of Pakistan heavily relied on the managerial expertise of professional managers from the old Indian Civil Service. When Bangladesh became independent in 1971, the members of the civil service who joined the new nation brought with them the heritage of the colonial system. This heritage included administrative competence, which proved invaluable in running a young Bangladesh and an expectation by the elite of benefits and power.
In mid-1988 the civil service was composed of twenty-eight separate services. There were twenty grades, with promotion to higher grades based on merit and seniority, dependent on annual confidential reports filed by the individuals' supervisors. Recruitment to the civil service occurred through open competition within a quota system. Forty per cent of all new positions were allotted on the basis of merit; 30 per cent were reserved for the children of freedom fighters, and 20 per cent were allotted to women. The quotas were distributed among districts on the basis of population. Eligibility depended on an entrance examination, which included English, Bengali, and Mathematics sections, plus a personal interview. The Public Services Commission, as mandated by the Constitution, conducted the examinations for the civil service. The recruitment system attempted to eliminate the entrenched power of the old elites and to decrease the bias that favoured candidates from wealthy urban families. Although in the late 1980s it appeared that the new rules for recruitment and promotion might widen the backgrounds of civil service personnel and their supervisors, the older, senior members of the service continued to dominate the administration.
Since independence, membership in the civil service has been one of the most desirable careers in the country. For senior civil servants, benefits included government housing at a standard rate of base salary, transportation, medical care, and a pension. Equally important were the prestige and influence that accompanied an administrative career. For example, there was great power in directing a division of a ministerial secretariat in Dhaka, or one of its attached departments, subordinate offices, or autonomous bodies. Positions in the countryside were less popular, but the long tradition of bureaucratic elitism and subservience to government officials made the local administrator of the civil service an influential person in the community.
In the late 1980s, the centralisation of power and influence within the civil service remained one of the prime targets of administrative changes designed to decentralise politics and economic development throughout Bangladesh.
After Independence, the Bangladesh Public Service Commission was expected to promote national integration, from a social as well as a spatial point of view. Yet, despite the reservation policy, this elite body lacks representativeness. The partisanship of BCS officers has further reduced their efficiency as a binding force of the nation.
The rural touch that brings some romanticism to civil services with successful candidates springing up from remote villages and poor economic and deprived social backgrounds may be a thing of the past. Making English mandatory in the preliminary test and introduction of mathematical - based testing in the changes announced for Bangladesh Civil Services examinations certainly strengthen the view that it is loaded in favour of urban students. A vast majority of students in smaller towns see the changes as a big impediment to reach their goal while those hailing from urban areas argue that changes provided a level playing field.
We suggest that there will be no optional paper which will be replaced by an aptitude test. The question paper will have several segments including Comprehension, Interpersonal skills including communication skills, Logical reasoning and analytical ability, Decision making and problem solving, General mental ability, Basic numeracy and Data interpretation etc.
With environment taking centre stage, General Studies' paper will have environmental studies that would test candidates for their knowledge in environmental ecology, bio-diversity and climate change. The changes have paved way to an argument that those memorising subject-based text material and reproducing them in the test will now find it difficult. The modifications will provide a level-playing field to all candidates, as they have to answer the same set of questions. Will the new pattern increase burden on candidates? The opinion is strongly in favour of it. Earlier, candidates used to choose an optional subject right from preliminary and continue it till the main exam. But now they have to prepare for English and Maths related questions separately for prelims and start afresh for the optional subject after clearing preliminary. The number might increase now as employees and those working in the industry feel that they too have a chance with the introduction of English and mathematical-based questions. With State students known for their Maths prowess one can expect more aspirants and more successful candidates from the State in the near future. That will be the silver lining in Bangladeshi bureaucrat's competence, like truth, beauty and contact lenses, is in the eye of the beholder.
Gopal Sengupta
Canada
gopalsengupta@aol.com