Rule 20: Terms and Conditions of Appointment and Service of Officers and Employees of the Board
Statutory Text — Rule 20: Terms and Conditions of Appointment and Service of Officers and Employees of the Board. (click to expand)
(1) The Board may, with previous approval of the Central Government and in such manner as the Central Government may by general or special order specify, appoint such officers and employees as it may deem necessary for the efficient discharge of its functions under the provisions of the Act.
(2) The terms and conditions of service of officers and employees of the Board shall be such as are specified in Sixth Schedule.
Rule 20 defines how the Data Protection Board of India (DPBI) can appoint its officers and employees, and how their service conditions — such as salaries, duties, and benefits — are determined. It ensures that the Board has qualified staff to carry out its functions effectively while maintaining accountability to the Central Government.
1. Authority to Appoint
The rule allows the Board to hire staff as needed for its operations. However, this can only be done with prior approval from the Central Government, ensuring that appointments follow transparent and lawful procedures.
These officers and employees support the Board’s day-to-day work — such as handling complaints, managing hearings, maintaining digital systems, coordinating with CERT-In, and drafting reports.
If the Board needs cybersecurity analysts or data auditors to examine digital evidence during a breach investigation, it can appoint them, but only after the Central Government approves the recruitment plan and position structure.
2. Role of the Central Government
The Central Government has the power to issue general or special orders describing how appointments should be made — including recruitment methods, eligibility, or pay levels. This prevents misuse of hiring powers and ensures alignment with national service norms, similar to how other statutory bodies recruit their employees.
Government oversight ensures that the Board maintains professionalism, avoids conflicts of interest, and adheres to equal-opportunity standards while hiring.
3. Reference to the Sixth Schedule
The Sixth Schedule contains the detailed terms and conditions of service for the officers and employees. These typically include:
- Salary structures and pay bands.
- Allowances such as travel, housing, or medical benefits.
- Working hours, leave entitlements, and holidays.
- Conduct and disciplinary procedures.
- Retirement age or service termination clauses.
By referring to the Schedule, the law ensures that these conditions are uniform, transparent, and easily updatable without amending the entire rule.
A Senior Technical Officer appointed to the Board will receive the salary and benefits as mentioned in the Sixth Schedule. These are predefined by law, so there is no ambiguity or room for negotiation that could cause inequality among officers.
4. Importance of Administrative Staff
Behind every order or investigation, the Board depends on a team of professionals — legal officers, analysts, technical experts, and administrative support staff. Rule 20 ensures that such staff are not temporary or ad hoc but legally appointed with defined responsibilities and protections.
This helps maintain consistency in how cases are handled and improves the institutional strength of the Board.
Suppose the Board receives 100,000 data privacy complaints in a month. Efficient case tracking, notice generation, digital hearing coordination, and follow-ups are only possible when trained officers and case managers are formally appointed under this rule.
5. Building a Professional and Ethical Workforce
By standardising employment terms and involving the Central Government, the rule encourages a professional culture based on merit and integrity. Officers appointed under these rules will be bound by government conduct standards and confidentiality clauses — important when handling sensitive or classified data.
Employees of the Data Protection Board must treat every piece of citizen data with the same confidentiality as financial or national security information. This ethical obligation is reinforced through clear service conditions under the Sixth Schedule.
Rule 20 ensures that the Data Protection Board has a legally structured, government-approved workforce to support its operations. It provides for proper hiring, defined service conditions, and oversight by the Central Government — creating a strong administrative foundation for India’s data protection enforcement system.