ISLAMABAD: The federal government on Monday notified the promotions of six senior bureaucrats to grade 22 and approved the promotions of 10 officers who are still awaiting posting.

The promoted officers belong to various groups and services within the civil service.

The promotions of three officers from the Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS) formerly known as the District Management Group (DMG) were notified on Monday. Yousaf Nasim Khokhar has been appointed Planning Division secretary, Irfan Ilahi has been made Aviation Division secretary and Rabia Javeri has been posted as secretary at the Human Rights Division.

The officers were already heading these divisions in an acting capacity. Mr Ilahi belongs to the 13th Common, while Mr Khokhar and Ms Javeri are from the 14th Common. Ms Javeri`s husband Agha Jan Akhtar of the 15th Common was appointed chairman of the Port Qasim Authority after his retirement in 2013.

From the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), Inland Revenue Service Officer Tasnim Rehman has been promoted as chief commissioner Inland Revenue at the Corporate Regional Tax Office in Lahore; Economic Affairs Division Secretary Tariq Pasha has also been promoted tograde 22; Nasir Masroor Ahmad of the Customs group has also been promoted and his post re-designated as Member (Customs) in grade 22.

In addition, the government also approved the promotions of Punjab Home Secretary Azam Suleman, Punjab Additional Chief Secretary Khawaja Shumail, Additional Secretary Interior Aurangzeb Haq, Additional Chief Secretary Khyber Pakhtunlchwa (Fata Secretariat) Fida Wazir and Export Processing Zone Authority Chairman Mumtaz Ali Shah.

Three officers from the Secretariat group were also promoted to grade 22: Additional Law Secretary Naila Qureshi, National Institute of Population Studies Director General Mukhtar Ahmed, and Additional Secretary Arshad Ahmed.

Others promoted into grade 22 include Iftikhar Aziz of the Foreign Service and Mir Zubair of the Police Service of Pakistan (PSP).

Sources said that the promoted officers who had current charge of grade 22 posts would retain their offices, while a majority of them might be posted or transferred to different ministries and divisions later.

Regarding those whose promotions had not been notified as yet, sources said the prime minister had approved their promotions since it was yet to be decided whether those working in the provinces would be brought to the Centre, or whether their services would be retained in the provinces.

The promotions were approved by a high-powered selection board, which met on Feb 9 to review the cases for promotion.

Over 400 promotion cases for officers in grades 19 and 20 have been pending before the prime minister since 2015.