Agri Scientists' Recruitment Board (ASRB) delinked from ICAR

 Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi approved the proposal for restructuring of Agricultural Scientists' Recruitment Board (ASRB). With the restructuring, there are also few changes in the functioning of the board as well.

According to sources ASRB will be delinked from ICAR and will be attached with the Department of Agricultural Research & Education (DARE) under the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare.  This shall be done for the purpose of autonomy, secrecy, accountability and efficient functioning of the board.

The Agricultural Scientists Recruitment Board (ASRB) was established on 1 November 1973 as an independent recruitment agency in pursuance of the recommendations of the Gajendragadkar Committee.

The ASRB will now be a 4 Member body instead of 3 Members. It will have a Chairperson and 3 Members.  Prof. (Dr) A.K. Srivastava is the current Chairman (Additional Charge) of ASRB.  ASRB would be for a period of three years or till attainment of 65 years of age, whichever is earlier.

The four Member body comprising of one Chairperson and three Members would help in expediting the work and functioning of ASRB. It would support in expediting the recruitment process which would be beneficial for the agrarian community and agriculture at large. Moreover, it will ensure more transparency and efficiency in recruitment of meritorious scientists to various scientific positions in lCAR, the premier agency for agricultural research and education in the country.

 The budget head for ASRB may also be delinked from ICAR and be created under DARE, and the ASRB may have its own cadre of administrative staff in the secretariat and have independent administrative control. 

ASRB functions as an independent recruitment agency for the  recruitment of various scientific positions in Agricultural Research Service and Research Management Positions of ICAR/DARE. In view of the significant increase in work load of ASRB a proposal was initiated for restructuring of the Board, and the Cabinet approved the proposal in October 1986 by increasing the membership from one to three of ASRB. Since the last restructuring of ASRB in 1986, the work load of ASRB have substantially increased and significant changes have occurred in the field of agricultural science, and hence, there was a need to enlarge the composition of the board and to expand the zone of expertise to choose the Chairman and Members of the Board.