Country India | Legal personality Government Service | |
Formerly part of Central Information Service Staff College Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi Cadre Controlling Authority Duties Media Managers of Govt.
Official Spokespersons
Media Adviser to Ministries
Heading DD News & All India Radio
Policy Formulation
Policy Implementation | ||
The Indian Information Service (IIS) (Hindi: भारतीय सूचना सेवा) is a Group-A Central Service under the Government of India. Indian Information Service officers are the media managers of the Government of India. They acts as a vital communication link between the Government and the people by way of disseminating information and communicating various Government policies and schemes to the public at large; and also collecting and providing valuable feedback to the Government for policy formulation.
Contents
Most IIS officers work in various media units which are under Ministry of Information and Broadcasting such as DD News, All India Radio, Press Information Bureau etc. During their tenure in Press Information Bureau, they are posted with various Ministries as spokespersons to handle the Ministry's information and communication needs and help in policy formulation.
IIS officers are also posted as spokespersons to various constitutional bodies such as Comptroller and Auditor General of India, Election Commission of India and statutory bodies such as Central Bureau of Investigation. Besides postings all over India, an IIS officer also gets posted to a few foreign assignments under Prasar Bharati.
Under Central Staffing Scheme, like any other Central Service, an IIS officer also gets the opportunity to serve on deputation basis with various Ministries and Departments in administrative capacity.
History
Indian Information Service (IIS) was established as an organised central service named Central Information Service (CIS) on 1 March 1960. Prior to 1960, these posts were manned by officers recruited separately by each media unit. In 1987, CIS was bifurcated into IIS Group 'A' and IIS Group 'B'.
Recruitment
IIS Group-A officers are selected through two modes,
- Direct recruitment through the prestigious Civil Services Examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission for recruitment to the various Civil Services of the Government of India, including the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and Indian Police Service(IPS) among others.
- And also through promotion to IIS Group-A from the Senior Grade officers of IIS Group-B.
Training
After the officers are allocated the Service depending on their rank and preferences in the Civil Services Exam, they undergo a three months Foundation Course at Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration Mussoorie.This is followed by nine months of professional training at Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi. Thereafter, an IIS Probationer undergoes one year On-Job-Training, during which he/she is attached to various media units under Ministry of Information and Broadcasting such as-
Career Progression
After successful completion of the two years of probation, an IIS officer is posted to a media unit depending on the vacancy and requirement. During the various roles of his career, in Directorate hierarchy, an IIS officer progresses through following designations in ascending order of seniority-
Work profile
By its very nature of handling the information and communication, the Service enjoys a great diversity in its nature of work and responsibilities. The Ministry of I&B lists the functions of an IIS officer in its official mandate as-