There is a lot of scope for engineering skills to be applied in most Civil Services. I’ll elaborate with regard to IA&AS. It should be similar in case of other services to.
Engineering Aptitude: Engineers are trained to be problem solvers. They are trained to think structurally and scientifically. This problem solving ability is very much the need of the day.
The need for the Technocrat: With the growing penetration of technology, both in the government and amongst the governed, bureaucrats can longer expect to be efficient without being at ease with technology. This holds true for every civil service. For example, an IPS officer who knows about social media, cell phone networks, computer networks etc will have a definite advantage in his daily dealings. In IAAS the deparment is increasingly becoming reliant on Data Analytics for producing Audit Reports etc. The IAAS officers are trained in these technologies. We even have a world class facility for Information Systems Audit Training (iCISA in Noida). An engineer has a definite advantage over people from other streams of study in this respect.
A bit more unconventional skill that an engineer has is how he manages to pass his exams by studying the day before the exam. I am pretty sure this skill will keep coming handy throughout our career :)
Finally, I believe it to be great that there is diversity in every batch of the services. Each of us brings a different skill set to the table which when bundled together makes us more effective as a collective.