Aims To Overhaul State Engine

The government has officially decided to table the long-awaited Federal Civil Service Bill in the Federal Parliament. It tends to signal a decisive bid to completely restructure administrative apparatus. Initially claimed as a cornerstone of the administration’s ambitious 100-point Governance Reform Agenda, which originally promised its introduction within 45 days of taking office the bill has transitioned from a stalled administrative draft into active legislative initiative and consideration. Following intense coordination across ministries, legal adjustments by the Ministry of Law, and a formal advisory consultation with the Public Service Commission (PSC), the Cabinet has given the green light, which marks the most significant attempt to break the decade-long legislative stalemate surrounding administrative federalism.

Structural impediment

For a country like Nepal  that has  transitioned into a federal democratic republic under the 2015 Constitution authored by a historic Constituent Assembly, the lack of a permanent Federal Civil Service Act for a long duration has long been a crippling structural impediment . The earlier governments failed in their commitment to enact the civil service law, as they historically relied on temporary adjustments, leaving provincial and local governments functionally subordinate to central bureaucratic deployment. By enacting this law, the incumbent government intends to cut administrative red tape, curb systemic politicisation, and optimise government expenditure. However, as the bill moves to the parliamentary floor, it is bound to face intense scrutiny from lawmakers, policy experts, and a deeply scared civil service.

The most contentious provision of the proposed bill is its radical structural retrenchment designed to achieve a leaner and highly efficient federal state. Based on a rigorous government-wide Organisation and Management (O&M) survey conducted recently, the bill proposes eliminating a substantial number of federal civil service posts, including several secretary-level positions. Currently, the federal government maintains around 48,000 sanctioned posts across ministries, departments, and offices. By pruning this top-heavy command structure of bureaucracy, the executive intends to redirect resources away from central bureaucratic inertia toward local operational execution.