Are you an IAS recruit? Get ready to be trained at police academy!

IPS? Or IAS by any chance?

BE an IAS, but take a flight to Hyderabad to get trained in police academy. Sounds odd? But that is already becoming a reality. About 400 promoted IAS officers, mostly from states of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, were recently sent to Hyderabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy for training. The reason? Mussoorie’s Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA) can’t…

Doc’s prescription to diplomats: Link diplomacy to India’s domestic economy, says Manmohan Singh

AS MANY as 112 top Indian diplomats heading Indian high commissions and embassies across the world, gave a patience hearing to Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh who spelt out his expectation from the country’s top diplomats while addressing at the conference of Indian Heads of Missions on Tuesday. The three-day-long conference, organized by the ministry of external affairs (MEA) in New Delhi, began on Monday. Prime Minister wanted the diplomats to link India’s foreign policy with domestic policies particularly economic policy, and stressed that the country’s foreign policy should be aimed at addressing the challenges of mass poverty, ignorance and disease in the country, which were the primary concern of the Indian state and polity. So what should Indian diplomats do for the country now? Prime Minister identified three pillars of our global engagement -sustaining capital inflows to supplement domestic investment efforts, the need to take advantage of rapid scientific and technological developments in the world, and the need to ensure that the country’s growth is not constrained by scarcity of natural resources, an MEA release said. Read, "Doc’s prescription: Manmohan Singh asks PMO officials to think creatively" posted on June 12, 2009. Also read, "Dr Manmohan Singh’s prescription for IAS", posted on May 30, 2009.

Action & Appointments: Padamvir Singh is new LBSNAA director a) Padamvir Singh, a 1977 batch IAS of Madhya Pradesh cadre, and currently special director, Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA) has been elevated as director of the academy in the rank and pay of additional secretary to the government of India. For those not so familiar with India’s civil servants and their training programmes, Mussoorie-based LBSNAA is the apex training institution in the country for senior members of the civil services. Mr Singh, who had earlier served as deputy secretary and director in department of personnel and training (DoPT) during the early 1990s, is known to be an expert of India’s public policy and administration. A graduate in economics, Mr Singh attended a 17 weeks long special program on urban affairs in an US university in 1992. b) N Gokulram, a 1974 batch Karnataka cadre IAS, and presently secretary in the department of animal husbandry, dairying and fisheries under the ministry of agriculture, has been attached with the Cabinet Secretariat as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the rank and pay of a secretary. c) Rudhra Gangadharan, a 1975 batch Kerala cadre IAS and currently director, LBSNAA has been appointed as secretary in the department of animal husbandry, dairying and fisheries in place of N Gokulram. d) Dr Ashok Kumar Amrohi, presently ambassador of India in Algeria, has been appointed as the next high commissioner of India to Mozambique in succession to Rajinder Bhagat.

CVC launches prosecution against 22 officers Central Vigilance Commission launched prosecution against 22 officers out of which seven were from Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) & ministry of home affairs (MHA). The Commission also advised initiations of major penalty proceedings against 135 officers of which 31 were from public sector banks, 29 from ministry of railways, 13 from MCD, 7 each from DDA, CBDT & FCI. Recoveries to the tune of Rs 90 lakh were effected after Commission conducted technical examination of some departments.

Tendulkars among officers may now get higher increment than what was proposed in 6th Pay Commission

IF Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) has its way, performing government officials may end up receiving better yearly increment than what was even promised in the 6th Pay Commission recommendations. While modifying the recommendations of the 6th Pay Commission that up to a 20% of the performers among officers may be given an annual increment of 3.5% instead of a normal practice of 2.5%, the government has now proposed that performers may be granted even 4% of increment. About 20% Group A officers in Pay Band 3 category will be benefited by this proposed guidelines. For the next one month, suggestions from various government ministries and departments will be accepted after which the DoPT would frame the guidelines. Officers at the lowest PB-3 band get a salary Rs 15,600 --39,100 with grade pay Rs 5400, whereas those at the highest level of the band get Rs 15600-39100 with grade pay of Rs 8400. Action & Appointments 1) Shekhar Agarwal, a 1977 batch UP cadre IAS and currently Financial Adviser (Acquisition) & Member (Defence Procurement Board) and additional secretary, ministry of defence, has been appointed as additional secretary in department of ex-servicemen welfare in the ministry of defence in the vacancy of Ms Neelam Nath, a 1975 batch Jharkhand cadre IAS. Mr Agarwal’s position will now be filled up by S Chandrasekharan, a 1975 batch IRAS. 2) Padamvir Singh, a 1977 batch IAS, presently Joint Director, in the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA), Mussoorie in the rank and pay of additional secretary has been re-designated as special director, LBSNAA. New initiatives to reduce suicide cases among armed forces The ministry of defence has taken a number of measures including better man-management techniques and increased inter-personnel relationship and communication between officers and jawans to reduce the incidents of suicide and fratricide cases in the armed forces, defence minister AK Antony said in a written reply in Lok Sabha on Monday. The government’s initiative has come in the wake of virtual status quo of such cases during the last three years. Whereas there were 142 suicide cases in 2007, it went up to 151 during the following year. There have been 48 such suicide cases in 2009 so far.