THE INDIAN RAILWAY ACCOUNTS SERVICE (IRAS)

The Indian Railway Accounts Service (IRAS) is a cadre of the Government of India. The officers of this service are responsible for managing the Accounts and Finance Management of the Indian Railways

Recruitment : The recruitment to the cadre is done through the Civil Services Examination. (In India, the Civil Services Examination is a nationwide competitive civil service examination conducted by Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) of India. Candidates wishing to enter many administrative services of the Indian government must take the test.)

The selection exam is conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) of India. The UPSC is responsible for recruiting middle and top-level bureaucrats for the Government of India. (The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) is a constitutional body in India authorized to conduct examinations for appointment to the various civil services of the Union. The Indian Constitution (Part XIV - Services Under the Union and the states - article no. 315 to 323) provides for a Public Service Commission for the union and a Public Service Commission for each state.

The first Public Service Commission was set up on October 1st, 1926 by the then British Indian Government in response to the demands of Indian politicians that the superior Civil Services be Indianized. The functions of this Public Service Commission were largely advisory and, because of this limitation, it failed to satisfy the demands of Indian political parties associated with the struggle for freedom. The British Indian government then set up a Federal Public Service Commission and provided for the formation of provincial level Public Service Commissions under the Government of India Act 1935.)

At the Railway Board level, the Finance department is headed by Member(Finance)i.e Financial Commissioner(Rlys), who is a secretary level officer. He is assisted by Additional Members/ Advisors who are of the rank of additional secretary to the Government of India. Within each sub-wing of the IRAS, there are directorates which are headed by an Executive Director, a joint-secretary rank officer.

Organisation : At the Railway Board level, the Finance department is headed by Member(Finance)i.e Financial Commissioner(Rlys), who is a secretary level officer. He is assisted by Additional Members/ Advisors who are of the rank of additional secretary to the Government of India. Within each sub-wing of the IRAS, there are directorates which are headed by an Executive Director, a joint-secretary rank officer.