Special Duties Officer (Pegawai Tugas-Tugas Khas) is an officer level of Brunei Darussalam's Civil Service which working under each ministry in Brunei.
The practice dates back to the British colonial rule in India, and was explained to the Central Legislative Assembly by a government spokesman in 1931 as follows:[1] "There are two principal criteria in appointing an OSD in the civil services - It is also sometimes used as a training post for a future higher level posting.
For example, when Raghuram Rajan served as OSD in Union Finance Ministry before beginning the appointment for RBI Governor and also when S. Ranganathan was appointed the Comptroller and Auditor General, he was first appointed as an OSD to understudy the outgoing CAG A.K.
In Bangladesh and Pakistan, it refers to a higher civil service officer with no assigned duties.
While some promotions are due to political reasons, others are made because of an absence of a suitable post.