Public Service Commission in Colonial India

The Charter Act of 1853 ended the patronage system of the Court of Directors of the East India Company. In 1854, the British government appointed the Macaulay Committee, which established the framework for open competitive examinations. The Civil Service Commission was created in London in 1855 to conduct these examinations. Indian candidates faced structural barriers, including an initial age limit of 23 years, an exclusively English curriculum with emphasis on Greek and Latin, and a single examination center in London.

Aitchison Commission on Public Services (1886)

Viceroy Lord Dufferin set up the Public Service Commission in 1886 under the chairmanship of Sir Charles Umpherston Aitchison, the Lieutenant Governor of Punjab. The commission aimed to address Indian demands for higher administrative representation while revising the entry rules.

• The commission rejected the demand for simultaneous examinations in India and Britain.
• It recommended abolishing the Statutory Civil Service, which Lord Lytton had introduced in 1879.
• It proposed raising the maximum age limit for civil service applicants to 23 years.
• It created a three-tier classification of civil services: Imperial Civil Service of India (recruited in Britain), Provincial Civil Service (recruited in each province), and Subordinate Civil Service (recruited regionally).

Islington Commission (1912)

The Royal Commission on the Public Services in India was appointed in 1912 under the chairmanship of Lord Islington. Its report was signed in 1915, but its publication was delayed until 1917 due to the First World War.

• The commission recommended that 25% of superior posts should be filled by Indians.
• It advocated partial recruitment in India through direct competitive testing and promotion from lower cadres.
• Its recommendations became obsolete before implementation because the Montagu-Chelmsford Report of 1918 proposed faster Indianization of the civil services.

Constitutional Formalization and Executive Commissions

Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms and Government of India Act 1919

The Montagu-Chelmsford Report of 1918 recognized the need to hold examinations in India. Section 96C of the Government of India Act 1919 mandated the establishment of a Public Service Commission in India to oversee recruitment and maintain service standards.

• It recommended holding simultaneous examinations for the Indian Civil Service in London and Allahabad.
• The first Indian Civil Service examination in India took place at Allahabad in 1922 under the supervision of the Civil Service Commission.
• It suggested that 33% of annual recruitment to the Indian Civil Service should take place in India, increasing by 1.5% annually.

Lee Commission (1923)

The Royal Commission on the Superior Civil Services in India was appointed in 1923 under Lord Lee of Fareham. The commission submitted its report in 1924, focusing on recruitment ratios and the immediate creation of a statutory civil service body.

• It recommended the immediate establishment of a Public Service Commission as required by the 1919 Act.
• It proposed that 40% of future recruits to the Indian Civil Service should be British, 40% directly recruited Indians, and 20% Indians promoted from the Provincial Civil Service.
• It aimed to achieve 50% Indianization of the Indian Civil Service within 15 years.
• It recommended transferring the control of transferred departments under Dyarchy to provincial governments, along with their respective provincial civil services.

Central Public Service Commission (1926)

Following the Lee Commission recommendations, the Central Public Service Commission was established on October 1, 1926. It consisted of five members, including a chairman. Sir Ross Barker, a senior member of the Home Civil Service of the United Kingdom, became the first Chairman of the Central Public Service Commission.

Government of India Act 1935

The Government of India Act 1935 expanded the structural framework of public service commissions across the country.

• It renamed the Central Public Service Commission as the Federal Public Service Commission.
• It provided for the establishment of Provincial Public Service Commissions in each province.
• It permitted two or more provinces to form a Joint Public Service Commission to manage recruitment shared across administrative boundaries.

Legislative Milestones and Commissions Overview

Facts and Historical Details

Satyendranath Tagore passed the Imperial Civil Service examination in 1863, becoming the first Indian civil servant. He joined the Bombay Presidency cadre. The Government of India Act 1870 allowed the Governor-General-in-Council to nominate native Indians to scheduled civil positions without passing the London exam. Lord Lytton operationalized this in 1879 as the Statutory Civil Service, reserving one-sixth of covenanted posts for aristocratic Indians. The system failed due to the lack of competitive testing and was abolished following the Aitchison Commission report. The age limit for the Imperial Civil Service exam changed frequently throughout the nineteenth century. It was reduced from 23 to 22 in 1866, to 21 in 1876, and to 19 under Lord Lytton in 1878. The age limit was raised back to 21-23 years in 1892 following widespread protests led by Surendranath Banerjea and the Indian Association. The Indian National Congress passed a resolution demanding simultaneous examinations in India and Britain at its first session in Bombay in December 1885. The British House of Commons passed a non-binding resolution supporting simultaneous exams in 1893, but the colonial administration delayed execution until 1922. The Federal Public Service Commission established under the Government of India Act 1935 became the Union Public Service Commission on January 26, 1950, with the adoption of Article 315 of the Constitution of India. H.K. Kripalani served as the first Indian Chairman of the Federal Public Service Commission in 1947.