New Delhi, May 31: IPS officers will have to specialise in at least one domain, such as counter-insurgency, anti-terrorism and cyber crime, to qualify for promotions to senior positions, according to a proposal being finalised by the Union home ministry.

"This is the first time specialisation in these areas will be made mandatory and linked to the promotion and increment of IPS officers. They will be evaluated on the basis of these specialisations," said a ministry official.

Under the proposal, IPS officers will have to undergo training in one of the areas before being promoted as deputy-inspector-general (DIG), inspector-general (IG) and additional-director-general (ADG). The area of specialisation will be listed in officers' performance appraisal reports.

The blueprint of the proposal has recently been sent to the department of personnel and training, which reports to the Prime Minister's Office, for the final nod. The home ministry is the cadre-controlling authority of IPS officers.

The list of subjects also includes anti-corruption, police research and development, and criminal investigation. "Before being promoted as DIG, an officer will have to undergo training in at least one of the domains. For promotion as IG and ADG, the mandatory training will have to be completed," the official said.

The National Police Academy in Hyderabad - where IPS officers are trained - and similar institutes in states have been asked to prepare the course modules.

Sources said the proposal to link IPS promotions to training in specialised areas was initially discussed in November last year at an annual conference of top officers in Hyderabad. Both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and home minister Rajnath Singh had attended the meeting.

"The main objective behind this (training) is to improve policing," said another official.

An IPS officer now goes through at least three mid-term training programmes - the first after seven to nine years in the job, the next after another six years and the final one after completing 21 years in service. But these sessions are general in nature.

The IPS Association welcomed the move but said officers should be given freedom to choose a domain of training based on their interest.

The sources said the Centre was considering a similar proposal for other all-India services.