IFS Day is celebrated on 9 October every year.
"Confident that the IFS will grow from strength to strength in the coming years. It will reflect a new and confident India, even as it helps meet our national goals for 2047," the external affairs minister expressed confidence in the civil service.
"Greetings to members of the Indian Foreign Service on #IFS Day 2022. In a rapidly changing world, they strive everyday to advance India's interests, expand our footprint and enhance our standing," Jaishankar tweeted.
"The splendid manner in which it rose to the challenges of Operation Ganga was recognised by the entire nation," he said. Operation Ganga was an evacuation operation by the Government of India to evacuate the Indian citizens amidst the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, who had crossed over to neighboring countries.
What is Indian Foreign Service Day?
On 9 October 1946, the Indian government established the Indian Foreign Service for India's diplomatic, consular and commercial representation overseas. With independence, there was a near-complete transition of the Foreign and Political Department into what then became the new Ministry of External Affairs.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the origin of the Indian Foreign Service can be traced back to British rule when the Foreign Department was created to conduct business with the "Foreign European Powers".
Subsequently known as the "Indian Foreign Department", it went ahead with the expansion of diplomatic representation, wherever necessary, to protect British interests, the MEA said.
In September 1946, on the eve of India's independence, the Government of India decided to create a service called the Indian Foreign Service for India's diplomatic, consular and commercial representation overseas.
In 1947, there was a near seamless transformation of the Foreign and Political department of the British India government into what then became the new Ministry of External Affairs and Commonwealth Relations and in 1948 the first batch recruited under the combined Civil service examination system of the Union Public Service Commission joined the service.
This system of entry has remained the staple mode of intake into the IFS to this day.
Ambassador, High Commissioner, Consul General, Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations and Foreign Secretary are some of the offices held by the members of the Indian Foreign Service.
As a career diplomat, the Foreign Service Officer is required to project India’s interests, both at home and abroad on a wide variety of issues. These include bilateral political and economic cooperation, trade and investment promotion, cultural interaction, press and media liaison as well as a whole host of multilateral issues
