No decision to increase age of entry into government service

Public administration minister Farhad Hossain on Monday said that while there are no immediate plans to raise the age limit for entering government service, the issue remains open for future discussion.

Addressing parliamentary inquiries, he noted, “Whether to extend the age limit or not in the future, whether it would be good to increase the age limit or not, is a policy decision. We will review the age limit policy in the future and make a final decision.”

Saying that he will discuss this issue with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the minister also informed the House that the government has no decision to increase the age limit for now.

During a session responding to questions from Farida Yasmin of the reserved women’s seat Awami League and MPs Rafiqul Islam of Chandpur-5.

Both MPs had inquired about potential plans to increase the age limit following a recommendation from the education minister.

Farida Yasmin said to her question that the Education Minister has issued a semi-official letter (DO letter) to increase the service age to 35 years.  Does the government have any plans for this?

In response, the Public Administration Minister said, We have already received such a letter from the Education Minister.  As I said earlier it is a matter of our policy decision.  I will have further discussions with the Prime Minister.  But for now we have no decision to raise the age of entry into service.  I will discuss it further in the future.

Rafiqul Islam highlighted the need for revision, pointing out that life expectancy in the country has increased from 62 to 72 years. It would be logical to adjust the age limit for government jobs to at least 35 years to reflect this change, he added.

In response, minister Farhad Hossain outlined the government’s recent strides in public service modernisation. Over the last 15 years, the government has made significant updates, including raising the entry age from 27 to 30 years, and extending the retirement age from 57 to 59 years. The job environment and pay structure are increasingly drawing top talents from various universities, he explained.

Speaking about the age limit, Hossain described it as a critical policy issue. “Currently, job seekers start appearing for the BCS (Bangladesh Civil Service) examinations around the age of 22-23, giving them approximately 6 to 7 years to secure a position in government service. We believe this provides ample time for entry,” he noted.

The minister affirmed that any decision to alter the age policy would only come after thorough discussions. This matter requires careful consideration with the prime minister. Although the education minister has prompted them with a formal request to revisit the age limits, the ministry has not yet reached a decision to implement any changes, Hossain concluded.