NEW DELHI: There appears to be a rising trend of reluctance among younger Indian Police Service (IPS) officers to opt for Central deputation, leading to significant staff shortages in key intelligence, investigative and security agencies -- raising concerns about the long-term impact on internal security, intelligence gathering and crime investigation.
According to sources, premier agencies such as the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) are facing acute shortages at higher operational levels. In the IB, more than 50 per cent of sanctioned posts at the Superintendent of Police (SP) rank are currently vacant. Even at the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) level, vacancies exceed 50 per cent, significantly affecting supervisory and operational capacities. The CBI, too, is struggling to fill a substantial number of SP and DIG positions.
The staffing crunch extends beyond these two organisations. Agencies such as the National Investigation Agency (NIA), Border Security Force (BSF) and Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), along with premier training institutions like the National Police Academy, are also reportedly functioning with several senior posts lying vacant. Despite the Centre increasing the central deputation quota for IPS officers to over 700 sanctioned posts, more than 200 positions remain unfilled.
Officials said the problem is not new. Vacancies, particularly in the SP and DIG cadres, have persisted over the past five to six years, with some ranks consistently operating at less than half of their sanctioned strength.
Former BSF Additional Director General S. K. Sood attributed the trend to officers’ preference for state postings, where they enjoy greater authority and public visibility. “Young officers value district command as SPs and are reluctant to give it up. DIG-level postings in central forces often involve difficult tenures in remote and challenging areas,” he said.
Senior officers also point to limited career incentives as a deterrent.