Chandigarh, Aug. 5 -- The city continues to have more IAS and IPS officers than its sanctioned cadre strength, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) informed the Lok Sabha on Tuesday. In a written reply to an unstarred question raised by Chandigarh MP Manish Tewari, minister of state for home affairs Nityanand Rai said the sanctioned strength for IAS officers in the UT is 11 but the number of officers posted here stands at 12. The sanctioned strength of IPS officers is seven while the current deployment is nine. The sanctioned posts of IAS officers include, chief secretary, secretary (home), secretary (finance), secretary (urban planning/smart cities), deputy commissioner (districts), joint secretary (finance), excise commissioner, two secretary-level posts, an additional secretary and an additional deputy commissioner. The official website of the Chandigarh administration, however, shows that the UT currently has a chief secretary, 10 secretary-level officers and a deputy commissioner at the IAS level. In addition, there is an additional deputy commissioner, two additional secretaries and eight joint secretaries - all non-IAS level - and a central secretariat service and an Indian Forest Service officer at secretary level. At one time, most departments were handled by just three senior officers - the adviser (now chief secretary), the home secretary and the finance secretary. The reply also noted that several officers are on deputation from Punjab and Haryana. The ministry said that among the IAS officers currently posted in Chandigarh, three officers from the Punjab cadre and two from the Haryana cadre are serving on deputation. Among IPS officers, one officer each from the Punjab and Haryana cadres is posted on deputation in Chandigarh. The MP had sought details on the sanctioned strength of senior officers, the current deployment, deputation from neighbouring states, and whether the government planned to rationalise the administrative structure of Chandigarh to improve efficiency and ensure fiscal prudence. Reacting sharply to the figures, Tewari termed the issue central to Chandigarh's administrative inefficiencies. "This question is the kernel of all the problems in Chandigarh. It is overgoverned and underserved, a quintessential bureaucratic parking lot," he said. Drawing a comparison with neighbouring districts, the MP added, "While Mohali and Panchkula, which are four to five times the area of Chandigarh, are run by a deputy commissioner and one SSP each, there are 12 IAS and 9 IPS officers posted in Chandigarh - more than even the sanctioned strength for a 14x14 sq km city." He also pointed to the administrative structure of the UT, stating, "The cherry on the cake is that the Punjab governor is the executive administrator of Chandigarh. No wonder nothing ever gets done." The MHA, however, maintained in its reply that the number of officers is determined based on "functional requirements" and described it as a dynamic process. It further clarified that no proposal is currently under consideration to review or rationalise the cadre strength and composition of the AGMUT cadre, including Chandigarh....