Department of Personnel and Training
Also called: DoPT · Topic: Civil Services: Role, Accountability and Reforms · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) is the central government's main department for managing civil servants. It sits in the ministry held by the Prime Minister. It handles recruitment policy and training, and it controls the IAS cadre (decides where IAS officers are placed and how). Its forerunner, the Department of Personnel, was set up in 1970 after the First Administrative Reforms Commission.
Example
In July 2024, a DoPT order removed the RSS from the list of organisations that central employees may not join. This reversed orders from 1966-80. The DoPT also issues the rules that govern central employees' service and conduct.
Don't confuse with
- Union Public Service Commission: the UPSC is a constitutional body (Articles 315-320) that holds exams and selects candidates. The DoPT is a government department that makes personnel policy and manages officers.
Related concepts
- Central Civil Services
- State Civil Services
- Recruitment and conditions of service of public servants
- Kothari Committee (1976)
- Baswan Committee (2016)
- Staff Selection Commission
- National Recruitment Agency