Jaipur: The long-awaited process to promote eligible Rajasthan Administrative Service (RAS) officers to the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) is set to move forward, with the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) Selection Committee meeting expected to be convened soon.
According to sources, the Rajasthan Department of Personnel (DoP) has sent the final list of eligible RAS officers to the UPSC after addressing objections and other procedural issues that had delayed the exercise for nearly three months.
The Department had initially forwarded the list for scrutiny in May 2026. The process subsequently faced delays after objections were raised by some officers and additional information was sought during scrutiny.
18 IAS Vacancies in Current Promotion Cycle
The promotion exercise is linked to 18 vacancies in the Rajasthan IAS cadre. The next major step is the Selection Committee Meeting, which will examine the eligible officers and make recommendations for induction into the IAS.
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The names in the latest list include officers from the 1998 and 1999 RAS batches.
1998 batch:
- Meghana Choudhary
- Om Prakash Jain
- Rajesh Singh
- Mukesh Kumar Sharma
- Mahendra Kumar Sharma
- Anju Rajpal
- Vivek Kumar
- Madan Lal Nehra
- Dinesh Kumar Jangid
- Poonam Prasad Sagar
- Umedh Singh
- Mahaveer Kharadi
1999 batch:
- Baghchand Baghel
- Aslam Sher Khan
- Narendra Kumar Bansal
The final selection will depend on the Selection Committee’s assessment of the officers’ service records and other applicable eligibility and vigilance requirements.
Bhuwneshwar Singh Chauhan’s Seniority Case Delayed Process
One of the issues that contributed to the delay involved Bhuwneshwar Singh Chauhan, a 2001-batch RAS officer who entered the service under the disability quota.
Chauhan had challenged the seniority assigned to him in the 2001 batch and sought placement with the 1998 recruitment batch. The matter reached the Supreme Court, which in November 2024 directed the Rajasthan Government to consider his case along with the 1998 recruitment batch.
His claim subsequently became relevant when officers of the 1998 batch came up for consideration for IAS induction. According to sources, the Department of Personnel has not accepted his claim for inclusion in the current promotion exercise.
Three Cases Remain Under Sealed Cover
Three RAS officers whose cases were kept in sealed cover during the previous promotion cycle are also part of the latest developments:
- Arun Prakash Sharma
- Ramswaroop
- Gopal Ram Birda
Their cases had been kept pending by the Selection Committee in 2025 amid departmental inquiries. The sealed-cover mechanism means the committee’s assessment is kept confidential until the issues affecting the officers’ consideration are resolved.
The case of Gopal Ram Birda has attracted particular attention after he obtained a court stay relating to the departmental inquiry. However, sources said the inquiry has subsequently been ordered to be reopened.
In the case of Arun Prakash Sharma, the matter remains complicated by prosecution sanctions approved by the Rajasthan Government in two cases registered in Bikaner.
RAS Officers Seek Early UPSC Meeting
With the Department of Personnel having completed its latest exercise and sent the list to the UPSC, the convening of the Selection Committee Meeting is now the key pending step.
Some RAS officers reportedly met Rajasthan’s Chief Secretary last week and requested that the UPSC meeting be scheduled at the earliest.
Once the Selection Committee finalises its recommendations, the selected officers will have to undergo the subsequent formal process before their induction into the IAS is notified by the Central Government.
