Posts vacant, IIS officers promotion delayed; Ministry cites pending court cases as excuse

The morale of officers in the Indian Information Service (Gr. A) cadre is currently quite low. Officers of the 2020 and 2021 batches have been awaiting their promotion from the Junior Time Scale (JTS) to the Senior Time Scale (STS), despite nearly 60 STS posts reportedly lying vacant. The situation is likely to become even more concerning with the 2022 batch of JTS officers becoming eligible for promotion on 1 January 2027. As per the DoPT calendar, the process for their Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) is required to be initiated in September 2026. However, the promotions of the earlier batches are still pending.

The delay in JTS-to-STS promotions is also having a cascading impact on the career progression of officers in the IIS Senior Grade (Group B). Officers who are otherwise eligible for promotion to the next grade are also unable to move forward, as the required vacancies and promotional avenues are not being opened up due to the prolonged delay in JTS-to-STS promotions. The concerning ministry has been citing pending court cases as the reason for withholding the promotions