Ministers and Officers Ranking / Grades

Indian order of precedence

The Order of precedence of the Republic of India is the protocol list (hierarchy of important positions) in which the functionaries and officials are listed according to their rank and office in the Government of India. The order is established by the President of India, through the Office of the President of India and is maintained by the Ministry of Home Affairs. It is only used to indicate ceremonial protocol and has no legal standing; it does not reflect the Indian presidential line of succession or the co-equal status of the separation of powers under the Constitution.

Also included below is the Warrant of Precedence (WoP) compiled from a joint consideration of the existing Central Warrant of Precedence (which is till the rank of Major General) and Warrant of Precedence of the year 1937, as per Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) directions contained in Letter No 12/11/99-Pub II dated 26 Dec 1966, the validity of whichhas been confirmed by Letter No 12/1/2007-Public dated 14 Aug 2007. The MHA has confirmed in 2007 that the Old Warrant of Precedence shall be taken as a guide to determine ranks below the ones mentioned in the current WoP.Pranab Mukherjee is presently the current President of India

Rank	Name of Posts
1	President
2	Vice-President
3	Prime Minister
4	Governor
5	Former Presidents
6	Chief Justice of India, Speaker of Lok Sabha
7	Cabinet Ministers of the Union, Chief Minister, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission, Leaders of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
8	Judges of Supreme Court.
9	Deputy Chairman, Rajya Sabha, Deputy Speaker, Lok Sabha, Members of Planning Commission, Ministers of State of the Union.
10	Attorney General of India, Cabinet Secretary, Comptroller and Auditor General of India.
11	Chiefs of Staffs holding the ranks of full General or equivalent.
12	Chief Justice of High Court, Speaker of Legislative Assembly.
13	Cabinet Ministers in States, Deputy Ministers of the Union, Vice-Chairman, Planning Board.
14	Officiating Chiefs of staff holding the rank of Lt. General or equivalent.
15	Chairman, Minorities Commission, Chairman, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Commission, Chairman, UPSC, Chief Election Commissioner, Puisne Judges of High Courts (within their jurisdiction).
16	Chairman, Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission, Ministers of State within the State, Deputy Speaker of State within the State.
17	Members of Parliament.
18	Members of Legislative Assembly
19	Army Commanders/Vice-Chief of the Army staff or equivalent ranks in other Services. Chief Secretary Commissioner, Linguistic Minorities Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Members, Minorities Commission; Members, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Commission. Officers of the rank of full General or equivalent rank. Secretary to the Govt. of India (including holding ex-officio). Secretary, Minorities Commission; Secretary, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Commission. Secretary to the President; Secretary to the Prime Minister; Secretary, Rajya Sabha/Lok Sabha; Solicitor General of India; Secretary, North Eastern Council.
20	Officers of the rank of Lt. General, Chairman, MPSC.
21	Principal Secretary to Govt. of Mizoram; Addl. Secretaries to the Govt. of India; Addl. Solicitor General of India; Advocate General of Mizoram. Chairman, Tariff Commission; Deputy Comptroller and Auditor General; Members, MPSC. Director, Central Bureau of Intelligence; Director General, BSF; Director General, CRPF; Director, Intelligence Bureau; Members, UPSC. Members, Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission.
22	Commissioners/Secretaries of the super-time scale of IAS; Inspector General of Police/Officers of the rank of Maj. General and equivalent rank; Accountant General; Principal Chief Conservator of Forest; Adviser, NEC holding the rank of Jt. Secretary to the Govt. of India or equivalent; Vice Chancellor of NEHU.
23	Secretaries to the Govt. of Mizoram, Legal Remembrancer; Secretary, Legislative Asssembly; Deputy Commissioners holding the rank of Deputy Secretary to the Govt. of India within their districts; CEM/EM/Chairman/Vice-Chairman/MDCs of Autonomous District Councils.
24	Addl. Secretaries to the Govt. of Mizoram; Chief Conservator of Forest; Managing Director, ZIDCO; Chief Controller of Accounts; Commissioner, Excise; Deputy Commissioners other than IAS officers holding the rank of Deputy Secretary to the Govt. of India within their districts. Brigadier or equivalent rank in other services stationed in Mizoram; Deputy Inspector General of Police; Commandant General, MRHG; Pro Vice-Chancellor, NEHU; Chief Engineer, Project Pushpak; Chief Engineers; Registrar, Guwahati High Court.
25	Jt. Secretaries to the Govt. of Mizoram; Jt. Legal Remembrancer; Director, Postal Services Mizoram holding the rank of selection grade of Indian Postal Services. Addl, Chief Engineers; Sr. Superintendent of Police; Colonel in the army or equivalent in other service; Directors and other officers holding the rank of selection Grade of MCS officers.
25(a)	Deputy Secretaries to the Govt. of Mizoram and other officers of the rank of MCS in the scale of JAG; Superintendents of Police; Assitant Inspector General of Police; Commandants, MAP/CRPF/BSF; OSD Special Bureau; Jt Directors and other officers of the rank of Jt. Director. Station Director, AIR; Conservator of Forest; Superintending Engineers; Senior Architect; Principals of Govt. Colleges, Protocol Officer; Director, Sports & Youth Services; Lt. Colonel of the army and equivalent rank in other services; Deputy Registrar, Guwahati High Court.
26	Under Secretaries to the Govt. of Mizoram; Deputy Registrar (Coop); Sub-Divisional Officers (C); Private Secretary to the Chief Minister; Deputy Protocol Officer; Executive Engineers; Deputy Directors and others holding the rank of Deputy Director/Under Secretary; Extra Assistant Commissioner; Deputy Commandants of Police; Analyst, DP & AR; Major in the army or equivalent rank in other Services; Deputy Conservator of Forest; Functional Managers, DIC; Civil Surgeon; Assistant Commissioner of Excise; Project Officers, DRDA; Exploratory Geologist; Assistant Registrar, Guahati High Court.
27	Superintendents of Excise/Taxation/Sericulture; Public Relations Officers; District Employment Officer; District Social Welfare Officer; Sub-Divisional Officers of PWD/PHE/P&E and equivalent rank; Captain of the army and equivalent rank; Deputy Superintendents of Police; Assistant Commandants; Assistant Registrar of Co-operation; District Statistical Officer; Assistant Directors and other officers holding the equivalent rank; Office Superintendents/Private Secretaries and equivalent; Pool Officer; Committee Officers of Legislative Assembly. Tourism Information Officer; Works Manager, Transport; Transport Officer; Finance & Accounts Officer; Treasury Officer; Dist. Local Administration Officer; District Industries Officer; Physical Education Officer; Youth Welfare Officer; Chief Coach; Judicial Officer I; Principal, ITI; Asst. Manager(Tech); Asst. Settlement Officer II; Asst. Project Officer; President, District Council Court; Research Officers (Planning); Dist. Fisheries Development Officer; Sanitation Officer; Superintendent of Jails; Asst. to Deputy Commissioner; Asst. Town & Country Planner; Health Education Officer; Asst. Soil Conservation Officer; Asst. Conservator of Forest; Asst. Geologist; Block Development Officers; other Officers of equivalent rank of this Article 27.

NOTE-I The Table of Precedence is meant for ceremonial occasions and has nothing to do with day-to-day functioning of the Government.

NOTE-II The order in which posts are mentioned in any one article isnot the basis for determining the seniority inter-se. Persons in the Table of Precedence will take rank in order of the number of the articles. Those included in the same article will take precedence inter-se according to date of entry into that article. However, where the dignitaries of different States/ Union Territories included in the same articles are present and there is difficulty in ascertaining their dates of entry, they may be assigned precedence inter-se in the alphabetical order of the name of States and Union Territories concerned after those whose precedence is determined according to date of entry into that article.

NOTE-III Chief Minister of the State will take precedence above all others included in the article 7 in a function organised within the State.

NOTE-IV Among the members of Legislative Assembly, the following will take precedence over other members. They will take rank in the following order :

• Leaders of Parties
• Ex-Chief Minister
• Ex-Speaker
• Chairman/Vice Chairman of various statutory Boards/Corporations of Govt. under takings.
• Ex-Ministers.
  (Other members of Legislative Assembly will be given seniority in the alphabetical order).