3.2 It is, common knowledge that a number of organised Group `A' Central Services have defective cadre structures which do not accord with one or more of the various requirements of an ideal cadre structure. Quite a few cadres have been structured in a haphazard manner or on ad-hoc basis without paying adequate attention to the requirement of viability from the functional, structural and personnel aspects. In some cadres, distortions have crept in as a result of inadequate cadre management and faulty recruitment planning. Some of the deficiencies noticed in the cadre structures of organised services are detailed below.

For smooth and proper cadre management, advance projections of manpower requirements should be undertaken atleast once in a period of 3 years. In the absence of recruitment planning based on such projections, the cadre authorities tend to resort to such unscientific practices as under-recruitment, over recruitment or other ad-hoc measures. Promotion blocks occur due to large scale recruitment carried out after a spell of prolonged under recruitment. This causes frustration among service officers resulting in less of morale and motivation. Unplanned or haphazard recruitment also loads to avoidable strain on organisational facilities during the years of bulk recruitment and under-utilisation of facilities during years of under recruitment.

In some cadres, the functional needs and requirements of the service are skipped and members are assigned functions which are strictly not in the operational area of the concerned service. This distorts the original objectives of the Service, erodes its functional role and renders the Service in effective.

In some cases, a large number of functional posts are found outside a functional Service, e.g. Indian Economic Service. Members of the Service are often deputed to ex-cadre posts in the same functional area. This is an anomaly. It is desirable that all ex-cadre posts be merged into appropriate Service as far as possible.

An important requirement of a well constituted cadre is that while it caters to the functional needs and fulfills the functional objectives of the Service it should also be capable of providing a satisfying career to its members not only in terms of work environment but also in the matter of fulfilling their legitimate career aspiration. The latter, however, depends so much on how the cadre has been structured at the time of the constitution of the Service and the manner in which it has been restructured subsequently from time to time. Obviously, in a structure which is too vide at the bottom or even at the middle level tapering off to a very narrow top, promotional avenues for its members are severely restricted causing frustration among them and reducing the effectiveness of the Service. Cadre review provides an excellent opportunity to remedy the situation.

Another serious lacuna of some organised cadres is the lack of provision for one or other types of reserves giving rise to cadre management bottlenecks.

Finally, there are some services which do not have proper recruitment rules.