Central Power Engineering Service
Formally constituted in 1965, Central Power Engineering Service (CPES) is a Group-A & Group- B Central Service under the administrative control of Ministry of Power (MoP). CPES, only organized Service under Ministry of Power, deals with one of the most happening and diverse power sectors in the world i.e. Indian Power sector.
Recruitment
CPES officers are recruited for the Group-A & Group-B posts on the basis of Engineering Services Examination conducted annually by Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). Total Sanctioned Cadres strength of the cadre is 541.
Training
CPES Officers are provided training at Induction level at National Power Training Institute for a period of minimum 34 weeks covering various modules on the subjects/ areas like Regulations, Thermal Power, Hydro Power, Transmission, Load dispatch, Renewable, Secretariat training on office procedures and Management training etc. On Job Training is also conducted at Thermal Power Stations, Hydro Power Stations, Sub Stations, Transmission lines, Load Dispatch Centres, Solar Power Parks, Wind Power Stations at various locations in the country. Apart from this, CPES officer at level of Junior Time Scale (JTS) are on mandatory attachment to Ministry of Power for exposure of working of Ministry for four months.
Allocation of Wing/Division/Circle/other units to officers
A candidate recommended by UPSC reports to Central Electricity Authority after his/her allocation to Central Power Engineering Service, which generally post him/her as Assistant Director/ Assistant Executive Engineer at Central Electricity Authority, an independent technical regulator of Power Sector in India and technical advisory office of Ministry of Power. Further, some of the officers at various levels are posted at Ministry of Power (main), four Regional Power Survey Offices (RPSOs), five Regional Power Committees (RPCs) and five Regional Inspectorate Offices (RIOs). CPES has encadred SAG posts (Board Members) at Krishna River Management Board (KRMB), Godavari River Management Board (GRMB) and Polavaram Project Authority (PPA).
Functions of CPES officers
CPES officers play versatile roles, amidst growing challenges, for the development and management of Power Sector of the country. Some of these are as follows
1. Formulation of National Electricity Plan and National Electricity Policy
2. Thermal Project Monitoring
3. Hydro Power Engineering and Development
4. Hydro Project Concurrence and monitoring
5. Thermal Power Engineering and Technology Development
6. Transmission Planning, appraisal and Monitoring
7. Power System Engineering and Technology Development
8. Management of country's resources pertaining to Power Sector
9. Research and Development in Power Sector
10. Providing technical advice to Central Govt, State Govts, Electricity Regulatory Commissions (CERC and SERCs) and other agencies in the Power Sector
11. Distribution Planning, Development and Monitoring
12. Grid management and formulating various regulation for Power Sector
13. Strive to provide affordable and quality power for all
Career Progression
According to 2015 Recruitment Rules of CPES cadre[1] an officer inducted at Group ‘A’ is expected to put in minimum 4 years of service at JTS level, and 5 years at STS level before his/her promotion to the level of Junior Administrative Grade/ Non Functional Selection Grade (JAG/ NFSG) level. Officers recruited at Group ‘B’ level need to serve minimum 4-5 regular years to jump to Group ‘A’ level.
The Career Progression framework has been shown in the table below:
| Sl No. | Level | Ascending order of precedence |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Junior Time Scale (JTS) | Assistant Director Grade-I/ Assistant Executive Engineer
(Equivalent to Assistant Secretary to GoI) |
| 2 | Senior Time Scale (STS) | Deputy Director/ Executive Engineer
(Equivalent to Under Secretary to GoI) |
| 3 | Non Functional Selection Grade (NFSG) | Deputy Director/ Executive Engineer
(Equivalent to Deputy Secretary to GoI) |
| 4 | Junior Administrative Grade (JAG) | Director/ Superintending Engineer
(Equivalent to Director to GoI) |
| 5 | Senior Administrative Grade (SAG) | Member Secretary/ Chief Electrical Inspector/ Chief Engineer/ Member (KRMB, GRMB, PPA) (Equivalent to Joint Secretary to GoI) |
| 6 | Higher Administrative Grade (HAG) | Principal Chief Engineer
(Ex-Officio Additional Secretary to GoI) |
During their tenure at Junior Time Scale (JTS) and Senior Time Scale (STS) level, the officers develop requisite competencies for greater responsibilities at JAG/ NFSG level. A CPES officer may further be promoted to the level of Senior Administrative Grade (SAG) and Higher Administrative Grade (HAG) level after putting in a minimum of 17 years and 25 years of Gr. A service respectively subject to other terms and conditions. There is practically no stagnation at most of the levels in CPES Cadre and promotion takes place at regular intervals. Further, pay parity with two years junior batch IAS officers, who are on central posting, is ensured for CPES officers with Non-Functional Upgradation (NFU). CPES is among 38 Central Service eligible for participation in Central Staffing Scheme (CSS) Deputation. Officers also go on deputation to various State Electricity Regulatory Commissions (SERCs), Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC), Appellate Tribunal of Electricity (APTEL), etc. in service and post retirement assignments as well.
Notable Personalities from CPES cadre
- A.S. Bakshi: he is former member of CERC. He had been chairperson to the Central Electricity Authority also.
- Anjuli Chandra: she is presently member of the Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission.
- Neerja Mathur: she is presently Member, Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission for the State of Goa & UTs. She had been Chairperson of Central Electricity Authority also.
- Rajeev Sharma: he is presently Chairman & Managing Director of Power Finance Corporation.
- S.D. Dubey: he is presently member (technical) in APTEL. he had been chairperson of Central Electricity Authority also.
- R K Verma: he is presently member (technical) in APTEL. he had been chairperson of Central Electricity Authority also.
- Karan Sareen: he is presently Assistant Director in Central Electricity Authority, he has chaired several International Conferences and published numerous journals.
- Kotthapally Satishkumar: he is presently working as Assistant Director and published papers in international conferences and received best M-tech project award from IIT Delhi