In this article, we are discussing forest officer importance, salary, roles, and responsibility, and few important tips to become an IFS officer.
But, before you go further you download the previous year’s question papers for best practice. and
also, Download UPSC optional subjects syllabus pdf.
Table of Contents
What are IFS Exam and Importance?
Indian Forest Service (IFS) is one of the civil services examinations conducted by the Government of India for the scientific management of its forests by the UPSC for officers recruited at all Indian levels.
It was formed in its present form in 1966, although the service dates back to 1864 when it was established as the Royal Forest Service under the British Raj.
The exam is conducted for recruitment to the Forestry Services of India.
The Indian Forest Service is one of the civil services of India and belongs to the highest All India Service Group.
All the top posts in the state forest department are IFS officers.
IFS services are placed under various State cadres and combined cadres, though they have the right to serve under both state and central government.
The main mandate of the IFS service is the implementation of the National Forest Policy which aims at ensuring environmental sustainability and maintenance of ecological balance.
An IFS officer is largely independent of the district administration and exercises administrative, judicial, and financial powers in his area.
Indian Forest Service is commonly referred to as IFoS. UPSC IFS stands for Indian Foreign Service.
Roles and Responsibility of an IFoS Officer
To become a Forest Officer you need to know that “what are the roles and responsibilities of an Indian forest officer?”.
- One of the main roles of an IFS officer is to protect and conserve the heritage of the forest and work towards the conservation of forest resources.
- Conservation of forest trees is another important task which needs to be taken seriously.
- As an officer one needs to work with forest guards and security personnel to keep an eye on illegal felling of trees and to be alert at all times.
- As an officer one has to work towards planting more and more trees in the forest area and have to take initiative and participate in such events.
- Animals are another important forest resource and as a forest officer one needs to ensure their safety and prevent any illegal activity that involves hurting or killing them.
- As an officer being alert of poachers and illegal entry in the forest area is also important.
- As an officer one will be responsible for implementing the National Forest Policy.
- The officer has to plan for legal commercial exploitation for timber, etc.
- The officer will have to do the necessary paperwork and submit the complete report to the forest department and ministry.
- As an officer, the forest has to be regularly surveyed and guaranteed that the work is being done properly.
- Travel will also be included.
Salary of an Indian Forest (IFoS) Officer
The following table shows you the salary of IFoS at various post levels.
Grade | Designation in state govt. | Designation in GOI | Basic Monthly Salary |
Junior Time Scale | Assistant Conservator of Forests/Asst. Dy. Conservator of Forests | Assistant Inspector General of Forests | ₹56,100 |
Senior Time Scale | Deputy Conservator of Forests | Assistant Inspector General of Forests | ₹67,700 |
Junior Administrative Grade | Deputy Conservator of Forests | Assistant Inspector General of Forests | ₹78,800 |
Selection Grade | Deputy Conservator of Forests (Selection Grade) | Assistant Inspector General of Forests | ₹1,18,500 |
Super Time Scale | Conservator of Forests / Chief Wildlife Warden | Deputy Inspector General of Forests | ₹1,50,000 |
Senior Administrative Grade | Chief Conservator of Forests | Inspector General of Forests | ₹1,75,000 |
HAG scale | Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests | – | ₹2,00,000 |
HAG+ Scale | Principal Chief Conservator of Forests | Additional Director General of Forests | ₹2,05,400 |
Apex Scale | Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Head of Forest Force) | Director-General of Forests | ₹2,25,000 |
Process of Becoming an Indian Forest(IFS) Officer
To become an Indian Forest Service officer, candidates are required to appear for an exam conducted by UPSC.
First, you fill the application form.
Second, you clear all three stages of the exam- Preliminary, Main Exam, and Personality Test.
Third, Document verification.
Finally, they give you the training to become an IFS Forest Officer.
You must need to qualify for the prelims civil services examination and then you can appear for Mains IFS/CSE Exam.
Interested candidates can apply for IFoS Examination through a common online application form of Civil Services Examination (CSE).
Important Steps to Become an IFS Officer during preparation
To clear every exam, you need to do create a preparation strategy.
But How you can create a preparation strategy?.
Don’t worry “follow these important points”.
Keep updated with Current Affairs:
- Read daily newspaper
- Learn from Monthly Magazine on different topics
- Read from Book and ebook
- Get knowledge from mentors
- News channels, youtube, blog, PDF, etc.
Solve Question Papers For Best practice:
- The practice gives you an idea of the structure of the question papers and the kind of questions that can be asked in the upcoming exams.
- It boosts your confidence and gives you an accurate picture of the upcoming question that will be asked in the exam.
- In last time, You can revise your whole syllabus of the IFoS exam.
- Get an idea about “How much time is spent on each question?”.
So, Download IFoS exam previous year’s question paper PDF for free.
Improve Personality And Communication Skills for interview:
The IFoS interview is very important and hard exam in all exams. Here, personality and communication skills play important roles to clear interview exams.
- It is important for you to clearly convey your views to the interviewers.
- So, focus on polishing your communication skills and body language. Few candidates are endowed with such skills.
- Some aspirants need the practice to become excellent communicators of their thoughts.
Make notes for Quick recap:
Make quick hand made notes as you go through the syllabus.
- This will help you to revise and have a better understanding of the related topics.
- You can easily find any important query during question-solving.
- Hand-made notes help you to learn the syllabus for a long time.
Be Honest To Yourself
A candidate must speak from the heart or answer all questions honestly. Because honesty has a positive effect on interviewers.
There is a common misconception among the candidates that if they lie about their hobbies just for the interview, it will never help them.
Interviewers are not only there to ask questions but also to evaluate the personality of the candidate and the ability to understand clearly that a ‘no’ is a ‘no’, it cannot be replaced with a ‘yes’ and vice versa.
Frequently Asked Question
Q. Is coaching class necessary for the IFoS exam?
Ans. There is a very simple fact that every civil services aspirant must know that if one is not mentally prepared and not strong enough to understand a subject fundamentally, then one cannot succeed even by attending coaching classes.
It is possible. Those who believe that only coaching classes with useful tips for preparation can help them can join.
However, it is always better to study each and every topic in detail with proper understanding rather than preparing for the name.
Q. Is easy to become an IFS Officer?
Ans. Cracking the Indian Forest Service Exam is as tough as cracking the Civil Services Exam.
It requires a lot of systematic studies, hard work, preparation of notes, etc. It is a bit different from Civil Services Exam as you have to choose optional subjects.
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