Thursday, May 22, 2014

Modi government may introduce admin reforms through a body under PMO; Post your comments too

THE new government under Narendra Modi may introduce a series of administrative reforms through an “appropriate body under the PMO” if his party's manifesto is being implemented as it is. Also, a “rigorous evaluation process” of government officers would be initiated wherein performers will be rewarded, and non-performers be sent for more training. “Good performance (in administration) will be rewarded; non-performers will be given…
opportunities and training support to improve”, the manifesto said.
“We will generate Kartavya Bhavna among public servants as lives and productivity of people is dependent on the quality and efficiency of public services,” the manifesto said. “Minimum Government, Maximum Governance” something that got echoed in Modi’s advertising campaign in the run-up to the general elections, may now get implemented. Also, the services of youth could be tapped to contribute in governance with fellowship and internship programmes launched at various levels.
The BJP has also promised to initiate police reforms and also to “strengthen investigations, making them swift, transparent, fair, clear and decisive - acting as an inescapable deterrent to wrong-doers and a protective shield to the innocent”.
Already, BoI readers have offered suggestions to PM designate Modi on administrative reforms. Kindly participate in the debate and provide your valuable comments.
One Madhuri Dabral has asked for overhauling of Central ministries and weeding out officers who do not have any field experience and have merely angled positions through contacts and patronage. “Name and Shame the corrupt”, she adds.
Another reader RK Thakur advises Modi government to focus on introduction of “Civil Services Standards and Accountability Bill, 2010”. “The Congress Govt. only paid lip service as they wanted to complete their tenure with pliable self-seeking bureaucrats in toe. This Bill will hopefully make bureaucracy more professional and independent, responsive to the needs of subordinates and citizens, professional, neutral, merit-based and accountable. One salient feature of the draft bill is the establishment of a Central Public Services Authority (CPSA) that would act as an interface between the government and the bureaucracy,” he says.
James Kutty, a regular BoI reader says the best thing the Congress government has ever done was the introduction of the RTI Act thereby empowering the people. “Tell me who wants to hide decisions in Files? Obviously all those who have taken advantage and played hanky panky. No honest officer will be afraid of transparency or RTI. Have you visited the parking area of Government Colonies. Many officers have swanky cars and lavish life style with air conditioner in every room. These are the officers who are afraid of RTI. All officers who complain and cringe that they are unable to take bold decisions because of the RTI Act needs to be immediately dismissed from service for gross incompetence. I hope the new Modi government takes appropriate steps in this direction,” he writes.Is this reasonable or an  extreme suggestion? Kindly provide your valuable inputs on what all the new government must do to make Indian administrative apparatus smoother. You can offer anonymous comments so long as those are non-defamatory.

9 comments:

  1. Ensure punctuality in Ministries. All officers and officials to be given smart cards which will register time and date of entry & exit. The monthly attendance data needs to be checked by the administration branch and those remaining absent without reason their leave is to be deducted. Administration Branch should tally with their records & check with leave application. At present the touch machines are lying idle which had been installed at entrance of Ministries with great fan fare. So many government servants come to office, pay lip service and concentrating on their private business. They stall transfers on pretext of working wife, aged parents and some go to extent of displaying medical reports and even handicap of children as reason. As a result there are so many privileged officers who have remained working at same station for years together. Treat all govt. servants alike & ensure timely transfers as per service conditions.

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  2. One very important aspect that needs immediate attention of Modi Sarkar is to immediately terminate the services of so many consultants & Advisers. The Ministries have been saddled with a plethora of consultants & Advisers most of them retired Government Servants. There are so many IAS and CSS officers who have been given such wasteful employment. They contribute nothing to the Ministries. If they were so good during their working years then the situation would not have fallen so bad. These Advisers & consultants actually self seeking sycophants who want to retain plush houses in Delhi & get hitched in this way. They get paid monthly pocket money & retain all perks too. In some Ministries like Urban Development as much as 65 consultants & Advisers were appointed in various Departments. Hectic lobbying by dalaals spoils working atmosphere and seriousness of governance. The Ministries are swarming with these fixers. The government will gain immensely if all Consultants & Advisers are abolished immediately. This will free valuable office space, ease pressure on housing demand and other facilities.

    Another important area is the Planning Commission. It is full of retired persons who have found a toe with help of politicians. I remember one consultant raving & ranting that he has to share room with another & there is no air conditioner. Another was disgruntled he was not given exclusive vehicle. As a result he was putting so many objections & letting out his frustration on the proposals submitted by Ministry he was handling. Once they get re-appointed as Advisers these fellows start comparing their perks to what they were entitled during serving years. In Planning Commission there is acute shortage of space, even corridors have been occupied & Personnel Staff sitting in small wooden cabins. This behemoth called Planning Commission needs to be drastically reduced to 25% of posts and all Advisers, Consultants abolished.

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  3. Please put in systems to recognize real work vis a vis perception management tactics. There is an urgent requirement to realize that format based administration delivering similar decisions just to be sticking to the rules is not going to lead to excellence. It will lead to mediocrity and status quo. The paradigm change in fundamental ways can only be done by efficient and clean service delivery dynamics. This is going to be difficult unless there is a capability developed by the leadership to distinguish political requirements out of officers and real requirement of development oriented work out of officers.

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  4. 1.except IPS other services can be abolished, even in IPS entry level should be sub inspector only
    2. 360 degree feedback at middle and upper management level
    3. People free to choose area/domain of work as per interest/capability/requirement. Proper HR management and career planning at each level. Separate secretary and department for same
    4. No fixed jobs bottom 10% to be shown door each year

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    1. great...reduce the size of bureaucracy...so many levels ..under secy...dy secy ..dir..joint secy..add secy...special secy..advisor..secy...

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  5. abolish ACR/APAR system. this kind of assessment of performance by two johnnies is defective. If analysis of data is carried out in 100% cases all corrupt are getting Outstanding Grading including those having CBI cases. what is reason? For every promotion entire last ACR should be examined and not just last 5 years. Corruption is low risk job. example take bribe, if get caught, first approach higher contacts pressurize CBI case will be closed. If not then give bribe and wriggle out. If it still not work & you get chargesheet & punishment never mind. Once currency of punishment is over and ACR is outstanding thanks to corrupt boss who happy with earning you bring then promotion is pucca. Therefore all ACR to be considered is must. In whole career if one charge sheet given deduct 10 marks if second charge sheet given deduct another 20 marks. If person graded as 9 in scale then deduct 3 points, he will get now 6 grading. this way people afraid to do corruption because it will affect entire whole career.

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    1. `good suggestion. when deciding promotion DPC should give marks as following-

      1 if no charge sheets in last entire years of career give 1 mark. if charge sheet given sometime in career give minus 1 if 2 charge sheet then minus 2 etc.

      2. if officer has worked in deputation one deputation is adequate in entire service then full one mark. if officer never worked in his own cadre in operative offices like divisional manager railway or deputy commissioner of commissioner then he will get minus 5 if he has worked full tenure then plus 5. if he has got recorded warning less than 5 deduct 1 mark if less than 10 deduct 2 marks. if officer worked in headquarters of his department and got headquarter allowance he will get two marks. thus 5 marks for field work and 2 marks for HQ posting. this will ensure offices opt for field. Then written exam marks add to it, then add interview marks, also add APAR grading. now DPC must add all marks prepare merit list kind of list and then study self appraisals & gradings and declare selected candidates for promotion. This will be better way to arriving and recommending names for promotion. At present DPC sittings have become jokes. All are just signing machines.
      Kindly note my above suggestion is based on what readers of BoI have given suggestion. i have added my input but i think it is logical, more scientific.hope authorities will give thought to this.
      Praveen K Srivastava

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  6. tHE QUALIFIED OFFICERS OF iNDIAN aRMY ARE NEVER PROMOTED TO HIGHER RANKS. wHY ?????????

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  7. Above everything ... raise the salary...so that that don't feel insecure to the counter parts working in private sector...performance based promotion...instead of fix promotion only after certain years...it leads to lazyness plus hard working officer too thinks as their efforts are wasted if both lazy and hardworking get same promotion and salary after fix years...plus timely appraisal will help curbing corruption as obviosly a chap working for 5 yrs in prvt goes to earn 10 lpaand govt employee earn 4lpa...corruption will persist...

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