Civil Services Day: Modi urges bureaucrats to be agents of change, innovation

As India completes 100 years of independence, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday lauded officers on the occasion of Civil Services Day, urging them to be agents of change and innovation with an active spirit.

“You have got an opportunity to serve the nation with this amrit kal. Although we have limited time, we make full use of it and work with immense dedication. We have difficult goals, but great courage. We aim to climb mountains, but we will also cross the sky.

Modi said the government has freed the bureaucracy from the shackles of protocol and hierarchy. “I meet officials from all levels and we hold brainstorming sessions to help them come up with new ideas.”

He said the government has allowed junior Indian Administrative Service officers to take over as central representatives, moving away from the earlier model of officials who had originally served at the state level.

Modi talked about getting things done or letting things happen. “The first is active; The second is inactive.> A believer in the first philosophy believes in change; Others maintain status quo. Efforts to affect change can help people leave a legacy that they will always remember.

He said the Bharatiya Janata Party government helped remove barriers of hierarchy.

“People-centric governance, government-centric governance and good governance yield better results and will help us achieve greater heights.”

They have turned shortcomings into efficiencies, which help overcome roadblocks, he said.

“The challenge is not how good you are, but finding out where we are lacking and addressing it.”

Modi said India is becoming the world’s fifth largest economy despite the Covid-19 pandemic. “India is number one in digital payments. Mobile data is cheap in India. India has the third largest start-up ecosystem,” he said

He urged the bureaucracy to come up with innovative solutions to reduce red tape and make government more efficient.

Modi asked the authorities to take decisions in the interest of the country. “More than 40 million fake gas connections, more than 40 million fake ration cards, more than 10 million fake children and women are getting benefits from the government. This is a legacy of the previous government.

He noted the important role political parties play in any democracy and each has its own ideology. “But as civil servants you have to answer to a code of ethics. Decide to act for the good of the nation and not for yourself. You should see whether a political party is using tax payers money to build a vote bank or to educate the country. And using funds to prevent corruption or reduce it? You have to ask yourself these questions.”