ISLAMABAD, May 11: Pakistan's civil bureaucracy may be the top heaviest among Third World countries with its 100 front-line civil servants costing the government nearly half a billion rupees annually. This would also make it the most expensive civil cadre.

On average, a grade-22 officer, the highest civil servant, costs the government about Rs400,000 per month, according to figures obtained by Dawn. Collectively, this elitist band of about 100 grade-22 officers, including 36 federal secretaries, provincial chief secretaries and heads of police, and senior members of the provincial boards of revenue cost over Rs480 million annually.

Many officers and their families may in cases cost the taxpayers as much as Rs1 million per month. The Civil Service Reform Unit (CSRU) at the cabinet bloc, which has been given the task of making suggestions in this regard, feels that if these officers are given just 30 per cent in a lump sum of what they cost the exchequer, they would live even more comfortably.

This is how it is done all over the developed world. For instance, says a CSRU expert, the only two people who get official residences in the US are the president and the vice-president.

On average, a grade-22 officer in Pakistan gets a salary of Rs40,000 (between Rs36,000 and Rs43,000). The average cost of housing provided to the top 100 officers, taking into account the market value of rent and maintenance cost has been worked out at Rs125,000.

The value of government housing varies immensely, depending on the city and locality. For instance, a government house in F/6-3 sector of Islamabad, spread over 3.5 kanals with servant quarters sized over 10 marlas, values at Rs50 million.

These dream houses, facing the picturesque Margallas and located in what is called 'Baaoo Mohalla' by local cabbies, can be rented at anywhere between Rs170,000 to Rs285,000 a month.

Government houses in G-6, valuing at Rs30 million each, can be rented, on average, at Rs85,500 and the ones in I-8 and G-10 sectors at approximately Rs57,000 each. According to CDA sources, the cost of housing maintenance in Islamabad alone comes to around Rs360 million annually.

A grade-22 officer is entitled to a telephone connection with unlimited billing at his office as well as at his residence. This is in addition to the prestigious green connection and a mobile phone with, again, unlimited billing.

The minimum average cost of these telephone facilities, excluding official usage, has been worked out at Rs50,000. In many cases, the residence phone bill alone can be Rs50,000. It can go higher in families that have children living abroad.

VEHICLES: A grade-22 officer is generally entitled to two vehicles along with drivers, free fuel and maintenance. But the general practice is to use as many vehicles as required from the fleet of vehicles available at the disposal of the officer's ministry or department.

The family uses them for shopping and for children to go to school. The older children are often seen showing off dad's sleek official cars at popular city hang-outs. The average expenditure of these vehicles is at least Rs30,000.

Technically, federal secretaries are not entitled to be paid for utilities like electricity and gas. But the heads of autonomous bodies and corporations are. So there lies the loophole.

Almost all federal secretaries are ex-officio chairmen of one or more autonomous bodies or corporations. For example, the ministry of petroleum has the OGDC, the ministry of industries has PICIC and the ministry of commerce the State Life Corporation under its wings.

The ministry of Information has PTV, Radio Pakistan and Shalimar Recording. The average of utility bills could be Rs40,000 a month. A grade-22 officer is entitled to two servants.

Only the hapless OSDs restrict themselves to this number. Some grade 22 officers are said to commandeer as many as 30 servants. A grade-22 officer and his family are entitled to first class medical treatment.

The list of hospitals on the panel reserved for them are the country's most expensive. On average the monthly cost of medical facility could be around Rs30,000.

TRAVELLING: A grade-22 officer, during official travel, is entitled to a daily allowance of Rs530 and (multiplied into three) Rs1,590 as hotel accommodation. So how do they justify staying in five-star hotels? Simple.

Their personal secretary makes a call to the protocol officer in the respective city and things get arranged. Nobody, including the audit people and the NAB authorities, has ever bothered to question this.

In the case of more lucrative ministries, like commerce, which has State Life in its domain, the latter maintains classy rest houses not just in all major cities but also in Dubai, London and New York. There is no way that the cost of staying at these rest houses can be worked out.

The living of grade-22 officers in provinces is even more luxurious. A provincial chief secretary has his house on 25 kanals that inhabits a whole colony of servants, including a Dhobighaat.

Some still live like in the good old days of the Raj with their houses stretching into acres. They throw parties that become talk of the town; their children get married in ways that makes even the richest green with envy.

Interestingly, this is the story of the legal side of their careers. Most of what has been mentioned is perfectly legal and there is hardly anything they can be nabbed for. Of course, there are anomalies in the system.

For instance, it makes no sense that the grade-22 officers should have Rs15,000 as house rent whereas they are allowed to use unlimited amounts on their residential telephone. And then, after giving them such luxuries, you cannot expect them to live in a hotel in Rs1,590.

In the meantime, the cost of general administration continues to balloon to Rs62.9 billion, which is 9.8 per cent of the country's total expenditure. The GORs are becoming lavisher, their officer messes more opulent and their golf grounds turning greener by the day-all of this at the cost of taxpayers who are sometimes barred even from passing through these GORs, like it happened in Lahore recently.