UPSC Prelims 2010·GS1·history·modern history

Who among the following Governor Generals created the Covenanted Civil Service of India which later came to be known as the Indian Civil Service?

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Last updated 23 May 2026, 3:31 pm IST
  1. AWarren Hastings
  2. BWellesley
  3. CCornwallisCorrect
  4. DWilliam Bentinck

Explanation

Lord Cornwallis is known as the Father of Civil Services in India. While Warren Hastings laid the foundations of civil administration, it was Cornwallis who modernized, streamlined, and codified the system. He separated the covenanted and uncovenanted services. The Covenanted Civil Service consisted of the higher grades of administration and was reserved for the British through a covenant or legal agreement with the East India Company. This system eventually evolved into the Indian Civil Service. Cornwallis also introduced strict regulations to curb corruption, such as increasing salaries and forbidding private trade by company officials.
history: Who among the following Governor Generals created the Covenanted Civil Service of India which later came to be known as

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