Second Administrative Reforms Commission

Also called: 2nd ARC · Topic: Civil Services: Role, Accountability and Reforms · NCERT: Beyond NCERT

Meaning

The Second Administrative Reforms Commission (2nd ARC) was a Commission of Inquiry set up on 31 August 2005. Its task was to make a detailed plan to overhaul public administration at every level, from the Union down to the district [1]. It was chaired first by M. Veerappa Moily and then by V. Ramachandran, and it gave 15 reports before its term ended on 30 April 2009 [1].

It matters because it is the most complete reform plan India has for the civil services. Its central ideas, such as a Civil Services Law and changes to Arts. 310-311, have still not been carried out, so it is a standard reference point in any GS-II answer on administrative reform.

Explanation

How it was set up and how it worked

• Legal form: it was a Commission of Inquiry, set up under the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952 [1]. Such a body has legal powers to investigate.
• Advisory only: like every ARC, its reports are advice. The government decides which ideas to accept.
• Chairs:
• M. Veerappa Moily, who served first.

• V. Ramachandran, who took over later.

• Time span: from 31 August 2005 to 30 April 2009 [1].

• Output: 15 reports on governance [1]. They covered transparency, ethics, personnel, e-governance, citizen services, the structure of ministries and state and district administration.

Key reports for the civil services

Report no.	Title	Year	What it is about
1st	Right to Information: Master Key to Good Governance	2006	Transparency; changes to the Official Secrets Act
4th	Ethics in Governance	2007	Codes of ethics and conduct; Lokpal; fighting corruption
10th	Refurbishing of Personnel Administration	2008	The main civil-service reform report
11th	Promoting e-Governance	2008	Fix and simplify a process first, then computerise it (process re-engineering)
12th	Citizen Centric Administration	2009	Citizen's charters; grievance redressal
13th	Organisational Structure of Government of India	2009	Fewer ministries; keep policy work separate from service delivery
15th	State and District Administration	2009	Stronger district administration

Main recommendations on personnel

• Civil Services Law under Art. 309:
• A single Act would set out the values of the services.

• It would also cover how officers are managed and how they are held accountable.

• Central Civil Services Authority: a statutory body (one created by an Act of Parliament) to oversee appointments and postings.

• Mid-career reviews:
• Officers would be checked at about 14 and 20 years of service.

• Officers found unfit would be retired.

• Domain competency: officers would build skills in chosen sectors instead of moving from one generalist job to another.

• Performance agreements: ministries and senior officers would sign up to targets.
• Lateral entry: experts from outside government would be appointed to senior posts.
• Replacing the Arts. 310-311 model:
• Arts. 310-311 would be removed.

• The protection they give would be replaced by statutory safeguards (protections written into the new Civil Services Law).

• Stronger district administration: set out in the 15th report.

Limits

• Its ideas bind no one. They depend on the government accepting them and then actually carrying them out.
• The ideas that would change the system the most (the Civil Services Law, the Authority and the change to Arts. 310-311) need new laws or a constitutional amendment. None of these has happened.

In the Constitution and practice

• Legal base of the commission: the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952 [1].
• Constitutional articles it wanted to reform:
• Art. 309: Parliament makes laws on recruitment and service conditions for Union posts, and state legislatures do the same for state posts. Until such laws exist, the President or the Governor can make rules. The 2nd ARC wanted a full Civil Services Law under this article.
• Art. 310: civil servants hold office "during the pleasure" of the President or the Governor. This is the doctrine of pleasure: in principle, the government can end their service.

• Art. 311: protects civil servants from that power. They cannot be dismissed or removed by an authority below the one that appointed them. They also get an inquiry and a reasonable chance to be heard. The 2nd ARC wanted Arts. 310-311 replaced by safeguards set out in a law.

• What the government did:

• It decided on 13 of the 15 reports. These held 1,251 recommendations, and 1,005 of them were accepted [1].

• DARPG (Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances) tracks how they are carried out, through a Committee of Secretaries [1].

• Partly carried out:

• Lateral entry at Joint Secretary level, from 2018-19.
• E-governance.

• Citizen's charters.

• Not carried out: the Civil Services Law, the Central Civil Services Authority and the repeal of Arts. 310-311.

• Related court push: in T.S.R. Subramanian v. Union of India (2013), the Supreme Court asked for Civil Services Boards and a fixed minimum tenure for officers. These are close to the 2nd ARC's aim of shielding officers from political transfers. States have followed the ruling unevenly.
• Link to later reform: the 12th report's focus on citizen-centric administration fits Mission Karmayogi (2020), which aims to judge training by service-delivery results.

Don't confuse with

• First ARC (1966-70): chaired by Morarji Desai, then K. Hanumanthaiya. It gave 20 reports, not 15. Its 1966 interim report proposed the Lokpal and Lokayuktas, and it led to the Department of Personnel (1970). The 2nd ARC did neither.
• Capacity Building Commission (2021): set up on 1 April 2021 by an executive decision under Mission Karmayogi [3][4]. It is a standing body that sets training standards. The 2nd ARC was a temporary Commission of Inquiry that only gave advice.
• 8th Central Pay Commission: a temporary body that recommends pay and benefits of central employees. Its Terms of Reference were approved on 28 October 2025 [2]. The 2nd ARC dealt with the structure and accountability of administration, not pay.
• Central Civil Services Authority: a body the 2nd ARC proposed to oversee postings. It does not exist, so do not treat it as a working institution.

Prelims Hooks

• 2nd ARC: set up on 31 August 2005 under the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952. It gave 15 reports, and its term ended on 30 April 2009 [1].
• Chairs: M. Veerappa Moily, then V. Ramachandran. The 1st ARC was chaired by Morarji Desai, then K. Hanumanthaiya.
• Report matching: 1st = RTI; 4th = Ethics in Governance; 10th = Refurbishing of Personnel Administration; 11th = e-Governance; 12th = Citizen Centric Administration; 13th = Organisational Structure of GoI; 15th = State and District Administration.
• Implementation: decisions were taken on 13 of 15 reports. Of their 1,251 recommendations, 1,005 were accepted, and DARPG monitors progress [1].
• Trap: the Department of Personnel (1970) and the first Lokpal proposal (1966) came from the 1st ARC, not the 2nd.
• Trap: the 2nd ARC proposed mid-career reviews at about 14 and 20 years and a Civil Services Law under Art. 309. Neither has been made law.

Mains Points

• Reform at the edges, not in the structure:
• Lateral entry, e-governance and citizen's charters were carried out in pieces.
• The core personnel ideas (a Civil Services Law, a Central Civil Services Authority and mid-career reviews) remain on paper.

• So the system has seen small fixes without the deep change the 2nd ARC asked for.

• Doctrine of pleasure vs accountability:

• Replacing Arts. 310-311 with statutory safeguards could balance neutrality (protection from political pressure) with performance (removing officers who do not deliver).

• This needs a Civil Services Act under Art. 309, plus fixed tenure and Civil Services Boards in line with T.S.R. Subramanian (2013).

• From reports to results:

• The 12th report on citizen-centric administration and Mission Karmayogi's role-based training share one goal.
• Both should be judged by citizen-facing results, such as service delivery and grievance redressal, not by the number of reports accepted or courses completed.

Related concepts

• First Administrative Reforms Commission
• Mission Karmayogi
• Capacity Building Commission
• iGOT Karmayogi

Read more

• Reforms and capacity building: from the ARCs to Mission Karmayogi