Cornwallis (Governor-General, 1786-93) was the first to bring into existence and organize the Civil Services. He tried to check corruption through-

• raising salary
• strict enforcement of rules against private trade
• Debarring civil servants from taking presents, bribes etc.

·Enforcing promotions only through seniority[1].

1800 Wellesley (Governor-General, 1798-1805) set up the Fort William College for training of new recruits.

1806 Wellesley’s College was disapproved by the Court of Directors and instead the East India College was set up at Haileybury in England to impart two years’ training to the recruits.

1853 The Charter Act of 1853 ended the Company’s patronage, enjoining recruitment to be through an open competition now.

The Indians, however, were barred from high posts from the very beginning.  The Charter Act of 1793 had reserved all posts worth 500 pound per annum for the Covenanted Servants of the Company. Reasons for exclusion of Indians were-

*    The belief that only the English could establish administrative services serving British interests;

*    The belief that the Indians were incapable, untrust-worthy and insensitive to the British interests;

*    Already there was competition among the Europeans for lucrative posts, so why offer them to the Indians.

Although, the Charter Act of 1833 theoretically threw open the Services to the Indians, the relevant provisions were never really implemented. After 1857, when the Indians claimed a share in higher services, the Proclamation of 1858 declared the British intention of including the Indians, freely and impartially, in offices under the Civil Service.

Indian Civil Service Act 1861 reserved certain offices for Covenanted Civil Servants language, based on classical learning of Greek and Latin. The maximum permissible age was gradually reduced from 23 (in 1859) to 22 (in 1860), to 21 (in 1866) and to 19 (in 1878).

1863 Satyendra Nath Tagore became the first Indian to qualify for the Indian Civil Service.

1878-79   Lytton introduced the Statutory Civil Service consisting of one-sixth of covenanted posts to be filled by Indians of high families by nominations by local governments subject to approval by the Secretary and the Viceroy. But, the system failed and was abolished.

The Indian National Congress, after it was set up in 1885, demanded for

*    lowering of age limit for recruitment.

*    holding the Examination simultaneously in India and Britain.

Atchison Committee on Public Services (1886) set up by Dufferin recommended-

*    dropping of the terms, Covenanted and Uncovenanted

*    Classification of the Civil Service into-

-      Imperial Indian Civil Service (Examination in England)

-      Provincial Civil Service (Examination in India)

-      Subordinate Civil Service (Examination in India)

*    raising the age limit to 23.

1893 The House of Commons in England passed a resolution supporting simultaneous Examination in India and England; but the resolution was never implemented. Kimberly, the Secretary of State, said, “It is indispensable that an adequate number of members of Civil Service shall always be Europeans.”

Montford Reforms (1919)

*     stated a realistic policy-if a responsible Government is to be established in India, the more Indians we can employ in public service, the better.”

*    recommended holding of simultaneous examination in India and England.

*    One third of recruitments to be made in India itself-to be raised annually by 1.5%.

Lee Commission (1924) recommended that

*    The Secretary of State should continue to recruit the ICS, the Irrigation branch of Service of Engineers, the Indian Forest Service, etc.

*    For the Transferred fields like Education, Civil Medical Service, the recruitments to be made by Provincial Government.

*    Direct recruitment to ICS and 50:50 parity between the Europeans and the Indians to be reached in 15 years.

*    A Public Service Commission be immediately established (as laid down in the Government of India Act 1919).

Government of India Act 1935 recommended the establishment of a Federal Public Commission and Provincial Public Service Commission under their spheres.

But the positions of control and authority remained in British hands and the process of Indianisation did not put effective political power in Indian hands since the Indian bureaucrats acted as the agents of colonial rule.