On balance, there is no dearth of aspirants for government jobs. The large number of candidates trying to get into various government services each year through the UPSC makes it evident that government jobs are well compensated as compared to the private sector. So the salary couldn’t be as bad as it is being made out currently. Moreover, let us face it: historically the best personnel have seldom joined government. There is always more freedom and money in a booming private sector. So when the good ones gravitate to government jobs as their first option it is usually because there are very few jobs available outside of the government and the compensation package from the government is better or at least as good as in the private sector with the additional quality of being a completely safe job — as safe as keeping your money in a savings account in the nationalised banking system. Then why is everyone within the government complaining? Could it be that they are all very demoralised? That the carping about salary is their way of expressing dissatisfaction about working conditions? About non-achievement?

Six studies done by the IIM-Ahmedabad for the Sixth Pay Commission say as much. They divided government departments into six groups and examined a variety of government work ranging from doctors working in big and small hospitals, engineers of the CPWD putting together a project, internal revenue officers collecting taxes, experts working for the Survey of India, staff in the postal services, ordinance factories, Central Police Organisations and the railways.

... contd.