IPS Vs IRS...Reply to Mr Saransh Aggarwal

Mr Saransh Aggarwal:- good evening sir,
even after thinking a lot,i am unable to decide whether i should have ips or irs as the second service choice after ias. The reason being;i feel ips has a lot of insignificant postings, completely politicised, no technical skill learnt which can be used in some other sphere if one desires to leave the service.So after thinking on these lines, i believe i should put irs over ips, the reason being that though there is comparatively less power and there are infrastructure issues, but at the same time i would be learning a skill which will come handy if a decide to leave the service(one should always have a contingency plan-abraham lincoln). I have read about some irs officers who left the service and getting big money in the private sector; some even started their own companies.
Sir, please tell me as to how many years does it take for an irs officer to learn as much, as is required to start his own tax consultancy.Furthermore, i have read that there isnt such a thing called indirect tax consultancy as yet,this field is just emerging but i dont feel that it is going to come anywhere near direct tax consultancy.
Please tell me
-whether what i have written above is true?
-should the above given points be taken into consideration while deciding the service choice or are they insignificant
-let's suppose i put irs over ips.Then considering that i am joining the service only to learn the skill and plan to start my own tax consultancy in future, what will be better irs(it) or irs(cce). i believe direct tax would be better.
Dont forget to answer; ips or irs.As far as my attitude and tastes are concerned , both the services suit me.
Please help me out of this dilemma.I have wasted a lot of time on this.

Mr Saransh Aggarwal:- sir, if suppose i put ips over irs, but later on ,say after the results have been declared and i get to know more about the various services, i decide not to go for ips, Can i deliberately fail the physical test? Which service will be allocated to me in such a situation?waiting for reply....

thank you
Mr Saransh Aggarwal:- sir , in ias, is agmut cadre better than other state cadres?
I have noticed officers whose parents themselves are/were in civil services have preferred to go for the ut cadre.moreover i believe that though they have less power but since they are posted in different areas(delhi,arunachal,mizoram and other UTies), they have more autonomy,the politicians dont have much leverage on them.Is it true?   

 Manmauji:- Hello Mr Saransh Aggarwal, thanks for your visit on the blog...I can understand your dilemma which most of the CSE aspirants have in their mind...the answer to this question can't be straight...I will try to answer your queries one by one in point form...These views are personal...one may differ on these findings...your discretion should be applied before jumping to any conclusion.
The reply is as follows:-
 [1] So called insignificant postings are in all services. There are lot of positions/postings in IRS [both IT & C&CE] where you don't have basic things like vehicle,manpower and some time even separate room to sit...This is very common in IRS[IT] where you don't have separate room..you might sit in cubicles just like in call centres...There is Central Revenue Building in Delhi near ITO....you can go there and see how IRS[IT] people are sitting and working with one telephone shared by two officials...This is not so with IRS[C&CE] at least where you have almost separate rooms with modest infrastructure. In IRS[IT], at lower levels, you don't have staff at all below you...Regarding, expertise is concerned, it is true that you will not gain much in IPS...therefore you have very less chances to get second job in IPS..but again there is no straight answer...if you work professionally in IPS and earn name then you will never retire from IPS as you will get numerous chances to serve the government in various capacities...In IRS, you will get expertise in taxation and can start your consultancy or firm afterwards very easily.
[2] You rightly said that several IRS officers have started firms after quitting the job...the time for expertise depends on you..you may take 5 years or 10 years to be perfect in the law...but tax administration is dynamic and changes every year post budget..therefore you need to update yourself everyday...But,I have a question for you, if you have already decided to start your firm then what is the need to compete for CSE as you can do it by clearing CA exams as CA's are more expert then any IRS initially...
[3] you rightly said that consultancy in direct tax is better at this time as compared to indirect taxes but due to Service Tax, now there is huge scope of consultancy in indirect taxes as well..After GST, this scope will further increases.
[4] Regarding IPS or IRS as you have written that you have taste for both...I think it is not possible that you have liking for both as both requires different taste and temperament...See,if you want to serve common people and can afford less urban life style, have appetite for power and stardom then IPS should be your choice, if you want to have urban life style,anonymous status,less power, no contribution to common man's life,satisfied with no manpower,no visible status symbol, file oriented typical office work profile, suited booted clients base, then IRS should be your choice...
[5] After selection, how can you deliberately fail medical test.....See before the result and immediately after interview, you will be asked to appear for medical in Delhi and it is full body check ups and nothing else..you can fail yourself in Eye test or colour blindness which will debar you from IRTS..in that case you will be given next opted service in your mains form.
[6] Your findings are not true..Look, if you are in IPS then definitely your work will be influenced by politicians..Why are so much afraid by them....they are a part of system...better to make them friends and enjoy job and life...you can negate reality...regarding UT cadre is better then other state cadre..I can say only that if you belongs to north Indian states then you won't prefer to serve in north east states or southern most states...in such a scenario,UT cadre is much better for you.
I hope, I am successful in clearing some of the dust from your mind...further query is welcome...keep on blogging...