Career in Indian Post & Telecommunication Accounts and Finance Service (IP&TAFS)

 

The Indian Post & Telecommunication Accounts and Finance Service (IP&TAFS) is a Group ‘A’ service which was constituted in 1973. This service provides accounting and financial services to the Indian posts and telecommunications departments. This service has been renamed as Indian Communication Finance Service (ICFS).

Roles and Responsibilities:

1. Assessing and collecting the License Fee and the Spectrum usage charges from the telecom licensors.
2. Conducting 2G, 3G, 4G spectrum auction.
3. Making of policies in the departments of telecom and posts.
4. Managing finances in the departments of telecom and posts.
5. Conducting internal audits in the departments of telecom and posts.
6. Accounting in the departments of telecom and posts.
7. Managing pensions in the departments of telecom and posts, MTNL and BSNL.

Training:

The training starts at LBSNAA at Mussourie, the same as that for IAS officers.

The below table gives the details of the training undergone by the IP&TAFS probationers.

Module	Institution	Duration
Foundation Course	LBSNAA, Mussourie	16 days
Professional Training Course	National Institute of Finance Management, Faridabad	44 weeks
Department Training	National Institute of Communication Finance, New Delhi	36 weeks

Career Growth:

IP&TAFS cadre officers get a multitude of opportunities, to serve in diverse profiles which are given below.

1. IT officials and Financial Advisors
2. Budget and Accounting managers
3. Spectrum allocation
4. Finance and Asset managers
5. Communications Division – as project controller
6. Internal Auditing officers
7. Revenue Assessment and Collection
8. Rural project management disbursing officers.

Grade and Salary:

Before any candidate decides to take up a career in IP&TAFS, apart from the job profile another motivating factor is the pay scale and the growth the career provides.

The below table gives exhaustive details on the Grade and Payscale associated with the IP&TAFS

Grade	DoT		DoP		Pay Scale
	HQ	Field	HQ	Field
Junior Time Scale	Assistant Chief Accounts Officer	Assistant Chief Accounts Officer	Assistant Chief Accounts Officer	Assistant Chief Accounts Officer	15600-39100 + Grade Pay 5400
Senior Time Scale	Assistant Director-General	Deputy Controller of Communication Accounts	Assistant Director-General	Deputy Director	15600-39100 + Grade Pay 6600
Junior Administrative Grade	Director	Joint Controller of Communication Accounts	Director	Director	15600-39100 + Grade Pay 7600
Senior Administrative Grade	Deputy Director-General/Joint Administrator	Controller of Communication Accounts	Deputy Director-General/General Manager	General Manager	37400-67000 + Grade Pay 10000
Higher Administrative Grade	Senior Deputy Director-General	Principal Controller of Communication Accounts	——	——	67000(annual increment @ 3%)-79000
Higher Administrative Grade+	Advisor (Finance)	——	——	——	75500-80000

IP&TAFS can be posted anywhere in India. The postings are mostly confined to capital cities. They can also be appointed to central and state governments, Central Staffing Scheme, autonomous organisations, PSUs and international organisations like the UN, ADB, World Bank, etc. on deputation.