The ministry of home affairs (MHA) has revised the empanelment norms for Indian Police Service (IPS) officers for appointment as inspector general (IG) and equivalent posts at the Centre, introducing mandatory central deputation experience for officers of the 2011 batch onwards, officials aware of the details said on Saturday.
Under the modified guidelines issued on Friday, which HT has seen, IPS officers will now be required to have completed at least two years of central deputation at the level of superintendent of police (SP), deputy inspector general (DIG) or equivalent to be eligible for empanelment at the IG level. Earlier, central experience was not a compulsory condition for IG empanelment.
The revised eligibility criteria will apply prospectively to officers of the 2011 batch onwards, many of whom are currently serving at the DIG or equivalent ranks in their state cadres and are expected to be considered for IG-level central postings in the coming years.
“Minimum two years of central experience at SP/DIG or equivalent level shall be mandatory for empanelment of IPS officers at IG/eqvt. level at the centre from 2011 batch onwards,” the home ministry said in its order.
The change comes against the backdrop of persistent vacancies at middle and senior levels in Central Police Organisations (CPOs) and Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs). As of December 23, 2025, official data shows that central forces had 69 vacant DIG and over 100 vacant SP posts. Significant shortages have been reported in key agencies such as the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
In January this year, Union home secretary Govind Mohan had written to state governments urging them to depute more IPS officers to the Centre to fill vacancies in CAPFs and CPOs, including the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB).
The push for increased deputation comes even as the Supreme Court of India has sought to curtail IPS dominance in the CAPFs. On October 28, 2025, the top court dismissed the Union government’s review petition against its May 23, 2025 judgment directing a “progressive reduction” in deputation of IPS officers up to the rank of IG in the CAPFs. At present, 20% of DIG posts and 50% of IG posts in the CAPFs are reserved for IPS officers.
Officials said the court’s ruling is expected to benefit nearly 13,000 CAPF officers by enabling faster promotions and addressing stagnation. As of December 23, of the 188 DIG and IG-level posts reserved for IPS officers in forces such as the BSF, CRPF, CISF, ITBP and SSB, 36 remained vacant.
In his letter, Mohan noted that although 40% of senior duty posts in each IPS cadre are earmarked as Central Deputation Reserve, several states fail to send adequate nominations or disproportionately propose senior officers. He also flagged instances where selected officers are not relieved by states, warning that officers who fail to join central postings within a month will face debarment from central deputation for five years.