The Union Public Service Commission conducts the Civil Services Examination once every year to recruit officers to various posts in 24 services. These services are categorized into 2 All India Services, IFS, 16 Group-A Central Services and 5 Group-B Central Services. Among the services, IAS and IPS undoubtedly grab the major attention. It is often seen that many aspirants weigh IAS vs IPS and feel unsure about which one to go for!

IAS vs IPS: Distinctions Between the Services

Indian Administrative Services or IAS is one of the 3 All India Services. The other two are the Indian Police Service (IPS) and the Indian Forest Service (IFS).

In the subsequent sections, we will discuss in detail the differences between IAS and IPS. But let’s first understand the factors that differ in both services quickly:

• Selection process
• Training
• Ranks
• Responsibility
• Remunerations

  All discussions regarding IAS vs IPS emanate from these distinguishing characteristics.

IAS vs IPS: Roles and Responsibilities

Individuals appointed in the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) hold key positions in the country's administration at the central and state levels.

The Roles and Responsibilities of IAS Officers

• Policy making and implementation: One of the major responsibilities of an IAS officer is the active participation in policy-making and implementation process. They manage the ground-level implementation of both central and state government policies and programs.
• Public administration: Government departments are like huge machinery working round the clock to serve the common public. It is the responsibility of IAS officers to manage the administration of respective departments. It involves activities starting from taking care of day-to-day departmental functioning to ensuring the quality of public services delivered.
• Disaster and emergency management: As an IAS officer, you will have to manage relief works during emergencies, like natural calamities. It can involve coordinating relief workers, ensuring necessary help to affected people and updating the government on the ground situation.
• Public relations on behalf of the governments: IAS officers are the face of the government's civil administration. They build citizens’ trust and confidence in the government by promoting and implementing government policies and programs.
• Supporting law and order enforcement: IAS officers do not directly intervene in handling law and order disruptions. However, they need to work closely with their counterparts in the Indian Police Service and help IPS officers to control and prevent unlawful activities.

The Roles and Responsibilities of IPS Officers

• Enforcing law and order: The primary responsibility of IPS officers is to maintain the law and order situation in their respective jurisdictions. This involves criminal investigation, crime control, preventing criminal activities and ensuring citizens’ safety.
• Public safety management: Maintaining road safety, crowd control and efficient and effective traffic management are also responsibilities of IPS officers.
• Criminal prosecution: IPS officers work with public prosecutors (PP) to bring criminals to justice. They need to collect evidence based on which PPs will argue in courts for criminal conviction.
• Community policing: Police officers also engage in citizen welfare through community policing. It can involve working with communities to build rapport with people and gain their trust in the police department.
• Counterterrorism: It is an evolving role of IPS officers. It involves working with national and state-level intelligence agencies to identify internal elements supporting and causing terrorism-related threats.
• Cybersecurity: Increasing penetration of the internet has made cybersecurity a serious cause of concern to citizen safety. IPS officers handle cybersecurity, prevent cybercrime, and protect citizens from similar crimes.

So, regarding the discussion on IAS vs IPS roles, Indian Administrative Service officers have a wider area of responsibilities compared to police officers. 

IAS vs IPS: Ranking

The career progress in the Indian Administrative Service is entirely different from the Indian Police Service. IAS officers can be posted in the Central Secretariat, State Secretariat or District Administrations. Similarly, IPS officers can get postings under central or state administration. Actual ranks vary depending on the designation.

Let’s understand the ranks and career progression of IAS and IPS officers under district and state-level administration from the below IAS vs IPS ranking table.

IAS Ranks	Minimum years in services to become eligible for promotion	IPS Ranks	Minimum years in services to become eligible for promotion
Sub-Divisional Magistrate	4	Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP)	5
Additional District Magistrate	8	Deputy Superintendent of Police (Dy. SP)	10
District Magistrate	12 to 16	Superintendent of Police (SP)	12
Divisional Commissioner (equivalent to Additional Secretary / Principal Secretary)	24 to 30	Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP)	13
Additional Chief Secretary	30 to 33	Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG)	15
Chief Secretary	34 to 36	Inspector-General of Police (IG)	19
Cabinet Secretary of India	Over 37	Additional Director General Of Police (ADG)	22
		Director General of Police (DGP)	25

So, when checking the IAS vs IPS career progression possibilities, IAS officers have higher opportunities for advancing in their ranks compared to IPS officers.

IAS vs IPS: Salary

At the entry level, both IAS and IPS officers get equal remuneration as per Junior Pay Level 10. The minimum salary at this level begins at ₹56,100 and can go up to ₹1,32,100 per month as per seniority. Beyond this level, remuneration for IAS and IPS officers starts taking slightly different routes. Let’s check the IAS vs IPS salary for higher designations.

• Cabinet Secretary Grade is the highest level for IAS officers. At this level, per month remuneration can go up to ₹250,000.
• For IPS officers, the Director General Grade is the highest level in ranking. The remuneration for a DGP under the 7th Pay Commission can be a maximum of ₹225,000.

IAS officers get slightly better remuneration. However, IPS officers are entitled to various special duty allowances, which can increase their salary.

IAS vs IPS: Training  

Coming to the discussions on IAS vs IPS training, the training curriculum for newly recruited IAS officers differs from their IPS counterparts.

• IAS recruits get trained at Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, Mussoorie, Uttarakhand.
• IPS recruits receive training at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy, Hyderabad, Telangana.

Conclusion

All the services under UPSC CS are equally prestigious and essential for the effective functioning of Indian democracy. You do not need to choose your preferred services while appearing for UPSC Prelims and Mains. It is necessary only when you qualify for the interview.

So, have you started your UPSC preparations? Take subject-wise Demo Tests and Prelims Test Series to understand your level of readiness for the examination.