Hyderabad, Oct.10 (NSS): The Union government has denied the request of 11 All India Services officers, who sought the Telangana cadre, and ordered these officers to immediately report to their respective home State of Andhra Pradesh.
The Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) has issued the instructions to 11 bureaucrats to report back to Andhra Pradesh.
Among those working in Telangana are IAS officer Vakati Karuna (2004 batch), Ronald Rose (2006 batch), Vani Prasad (1995 batch), Amrapali Kata (2010 batch), and Prasanthi (2009 batch), who all belong to the Andhra Pradesh cadre. From the Andhra Pradesh cadre, IPS officers like former DGP Anjan Kumar (1990 batch), Abhilash Bisht (1994 batch), and Abhishek Mahanti (2011 batch) are currently working in Telangana.
Amrapali Kata, who is currently serving as the GHMC Commissioner, will now have to return to the Andhra Pradesh cadre.
The IAS officer from the 2010 Andhra Pradesh cadre had sought to be considered a Telangana domicile, a request that has now been denied, based on the recommendations of the Khandekar Committee.
The Khandekar Committee, which was tasked with reviewing such requests, noted that the officer had challenged the approved guidelines for the allocation of IAS officers after the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in 2014. The committee found that her request to swap cadres was beyond the scope of the established principles, which had already been upheld by the High Court.
In a detailed report, the committee stated that Amrapali Kata had cited her “permanent address” as Vishakhapatnam for correspondence purposes in her UPSC form, and had requested to be treated as an insider of Telangana. However, the Pratyush Sinha Committee, which was responsible for the initial allocations, had already ruled out her request based on the approved guidelines.
The Ministry accepted the Khandekar Committee’s recommendation to reject her claim, emphasizing that the allocation of officers from the undivided cadre of Andhra Pradesh was done uniformly and in accordance with material facts.
The High Court had also reiterated the need for adherence to these guidelines, ruling that any deviation would be discriminatory.
The court has also noted that the officer’s attempt to challenge the guidelines constituted an overreach into policymaking. The Khandekar Committee underscored that her allocation to Andhra Pradesh was based on factual records and the same criteria applied to all officers during the bifurcation.
Amrapali Kata will now be required to transition back to the Andhra Pradesh cadre following this decision.
In total, 11 bureaucrats had requested the Telangana cadre from the central government following the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh in 2014. However, the Centre has rejected their plea and ordered that all officers working in Telangana be immediately relieved and report to Andhra Pradesh.
