A chartered accountant contrasts the average salary of the IAS and CA, stating online that “power is above money.”

The motivation for candidates to choose the hardest test, UPSC, has been a topic of discussion for some time. There are those who contend that the pay of an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer is insufficient, despite the tremendous effort and perseverance needed. In a widely shared article, a Chartered Accountant (CA) summed up this viewpoint concisely by pointing out that “the starting salary of a CA is the average salary of an IAS.”

The highest income for an IAS official is Rs. 2,50,000 per month, which is the same as the Cabinet Secretary of India’s salary, as CA Chirag Chauhan noted, sharing a screenshot to support his argument. An IAS official receives a basic pay of Rs. 56,100 per month, exclusive of supplementary allowances. As expected, his tweet attracted a lot of attention, and many people shared their opinions.

Have you ever heard of an IAS sending a report to a CA? At any point in time? (Unless the CA is a senior government official or a minister),” a commenter said, emphasizing the IAS officers’ tremendous authority.

With a more nuanced perspective, another CA said, “There is no comparison with any profession.” There are less IAS seats available in India than there are CA seats available after every effort. In India, just 180 IAS candidates are chosen annually. Seats for IAS cadres are determined by the state’s population and area. One of the greatest post-qualification programs for further education is the CA. Individuals choose their professional path based on their strengths and abilities in the field they want to work in.

“People wanting to join IAS are motivated by a desire to serve people; they are not motivated by money,” a third respondent said.

“I believe that if you don’t give IAS any salary, he will be okay working… as they work for India!” said a fourth person. Because of their passion for India, the majority of IAS are so patriotic that they would even be willing to pay the government twice to be allowed to remain! That is also how our IPS officers are.

The piece has had 812K views on the website since it was posted.