Central Superior Services

[4] The civil bureaucracy closely collaborated with the military establishments of Pakistani Armed Forces in issues concerning the national security.

[2] The bureaucracy consists of 12 directorates that provide vital office and secretariat related duties to the Government of Pakistan.

[5] The provincial bureaucracies are headed by the respective Chief Secretaries of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh, Punjab and Balochistan.

[6] The civil service exams are competitive[1] and provides equal opportunities to males and females, depending on their qualifications.

[citation needed] It was derived into "Pakistan Civil Service" in 1947 and reorganized and re-established into its modern form in 1973.

[9] The constitution allowed the government-appointed officer and chairman of the Federal Public Service Commission of Pakistan to choose the name.

The law allows the civil service of the federation and provinces to be regulated as per rules notified under these enactments.

The posts at the initial officer level, i.e. BS-17, are classified to be filled by way of promotion or transfer and by direct recruitment under share fixed for each category.

The recommendation for appointment in BS-17, under direct recruitment share, is done by the Federal Public Service Commission, established under its law as a requirement of the Constitution.

Since the number of direct officers at the entry-level is few, their quotas in posts in BS-18 to BS-22 are fixed on the higher side; therefore, their promotions are fast-paced.

These arrangements make the civil service attractive for talented individuals and instil a sense of superiority and pride.

Currently, CSS exams conducted by the Federal Public Service Commission include the following Occupational Groups.

Almost all of the country's high-profile bureaucratic positions such as the federal secretaries, the provincial chief secretaries and chairmen of top-heavy organizations like the National Highway Authority, Trading Corporation of Pakistan and State Life Insurance Corporation usually belong to the elite Pakistan Administrative Service.

The interviews are conducted by a committee headed by the Chairman of the Federal Public Service Commission, the same as in the case of regular candidates.

The task was to be performed by the National Commission of Government Reforms (NCGR) under the chairmanship of Dr. Ishrat Hussain, the former governor of State Bank of Pakistan.

The report also highlighted broad changes in the examination system, with the recommendation that a personality test be made part of the selection process.

[23] The civil services reforms have been under consideration, and the Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms Ahsan Iqbal has announced that the upper age limit would be increased to 30 years instead of 28 for taking the Central Superior Services (CSS) examination from 2017 onwards.

[27][28] On 2 August 2016, the Planning Commission announced plans to restructure the examination process by dividing the Civil Superior Services (CSS) under three cluster programs comprising three categories including General, Finance, and Information by abolishing the existing generalized system.

[30][31] On 1 January 2016, the Planning Commission began phasing out the Annual Confidential Report (ACRs) with the key performance indicators (KPIs) to determine the promotions of civil servants.