- I shared my views on the importance of teamwork and usage of technology, which has the potential to address people's grievances.
- We talked about institutionalizing processes as they will last longer than any individual and give better results to the people.
- Had a very fruitful meeting with Secretaries. Heard their views & asked to simplify administrative processes & make Govt. people friendly.
Work without fear, I’ll protect you, PM Modi tells senior bureaucrats
Narendra Modi I shared my views on the importance of teamwork and usage of technology, which has the potential to address people's grievances.
We talked about institutionalizing processes as they will last longer than any individual and give better results to the people.
Had a very fruitful meeting with Secretaries. Heard their views & asked to simplify administrative processes & make Govt. people friendly.
PM Narendra Modi’s message to the top bureaucrats was that they must take their leadership role seriously and be decisive to make things happen quickly and improve governance.
NEW DELHI: PM Narendra Modi on Wednesday assured the bureaucracy of protection against malicious prosecution for bona fide decisions, saying secretaries to the government can approach him or mail him directly with inputs and ideas on any issue for deciding matters quickly.
At his first direct interaction with some 72 secretaries who head the bureaucracy in various ministries on Wednesday, the message from Modi was clear: Top officers must take their leadership role seriously and be decisive to make things happen quickly and improve governance.
This is the first time in eight years that a PM has undertaken such an exercise and indicates Modi's aim of establishing a direct connect with the bureaucracy.
The message was also directed at Modi's ministers: that they could not treat their portfolios as their personal fiefs and the bureaucrats as their vassals. By pepping up the bureaucrats to approach him directly, the PM has sought to open a direct line with the bureaucratic leadership: perhaps a significant step towards the evolution of 'presidential premiership'.
The PM's exhortation came after some secretaries said the erosion of the role of PMO and Cabinet committee on appointments had rendered bureaucrats vulnerable to ministerial whims, and had narrowed the room for professional inputs.
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(The PM interacts with secretaries of the central government before their meeting on Wednesday)
Sources said the PM's primer, delivered in a friendly note, made the secretaries open up. Some 25 secretaries spoke. Fear of prosecution for doing their job emerged as the main bugbear and the CBI the virtual elephant in the room.
Section 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act was particularly identified as one of the main stumbling blocks. This section broadly makes a person liable for prosecution if a decision taken by him or her benefits any party. It was pointed out that nearly all decisions benefit some section or the other.
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(Narendra Modi holding meeting with the secretaries of the central government on Wednesday)
This section is like a Damocles' sword that hangs over bureaucrats' heads even long after retirement, which made officials wary of taking decisions in the wake of telecom spectrum and Coalgate scams. This brought governance to a standstill during the fag end of the UPA-2 government.
Modi set an informal tone for the meeting, starting with a free seating plan around a square table running along the hall. He then put the top bureaucrats at ease by walking up to each official to shake hands. The fact that he remembered the names of a number of secretaries helped break the ice further.
'10-year fatigue'
In his 20-minute primer, Modi told the secretaries that he would protect them against negative repercussions of honest decisions. "You don't have to fear (while doing your job) ... I am available (to protect you)," sources quoted the PM as saying.
Pointing out that he was a "team player", Modi asked the secretaries to build their teams and lead from the front by focussing on issues of governance. Referring to demoralization in the bureaucracy, sources said, the PM unequivocally told the officials that their "10-year fatigue will end ... now you will enjoy working ... you all are talented people".
Sources said Modi also quoted former home secretary PC Sethi that "politicians should learn to say no, while bureaucrats should learn to say yes" to drive home the point that they must take decisions without fear or favour. "Work for the people, not for the PM," sources quoted the PM as saying.
Another message was to simplify procedures and cut paperwork by weeding out "outdated and archaic rules, which, instead of serving the process of governance, are leading to unnecessary confusion". The PM suggested the secretaries make a beginning by cleaning up offices to "improve the workplace, which would automatically improve work culture".
At his first direct interaction with some 72 secretaries who head the bureaucracy in various ministries on Wednesday, the message from Modi was clear: Top officers must take their leadership role seriously and be decisive to make things happen quickly and improve governance.
This is the first time in eight years that a PM has undertaken such an exercise and indicates Modi's aim of establishing a direct connect with the bureaucracy.
The message was also directed at Modi's ministers: that they could not treat their portfolios as their personal fiefs and the bureaucrats as their vassals. By pepping up the bureaucrats to approach him directly, the PM has sought to open a direct line with the bureaucratic leadership: perhaps a significant step towards the evolution of 'presidential premiership'.
The PM's exhortation came after some secretaries said the erosion of the role of PMO and Cabinet committee on appointments had rendered bureaucrats vulnerable to ministerial whims, and had narrowed the room for professional inputs.
(The PM interacts with secretaries of the central government before their meeting on Wednesday)
Sources said the PM's primer, delivered in a friendly note, made the secretaries open up. Some 25 secretaries spoke. Fear of prosecution for doing their job emerged as the main bugbear and the CBI the virtual elephant in the room.
Section 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act was particularly identified as one of the main stumbling blocks. This section broadly makes a person liable for prosecution if a decision taken by him or her benefits any party. It was pointed out that nearly all decisions benefit some section or the other.
(Narendra Modi holding meeting with the secretaries of the central government on Wednesday)
This section is like a Damocles' sword that hangs over bureaucrats' heads even long after retirement, which made officials wary of taking decisions in the wake of telecom spectrum and Coalgate scams. This brought governance to a standstill during the fag end of the UPA-2 government.
Modi set an informal tone for the meeting, starting with a free seating plan around a square table running along the hall. He then put the top bureaucrats at ease by walking up to each official to shake hands. The fact that he remembered the names of a number of secretaries helped break the ice further.
'10-year fatigue'
In his 20-minute primer, Modi told the secretaries that he would protect them against negative repercussions of honest decisions. "You don't have to fear (while doing your job) ... I am available (to protect you)," sources quoted the PM as saying.
Pointing out that he was a "team player", Modi asked the secretaries to build their teams and lead from the front by focussing on issues of governance. Referring to demoralization in the bureaucracy, sources said, the PM unequivocally told the officials that their "10-year fatigue will end ... now you will enjoy working ... you all are talented people".
Sources said Modi also quoted former home secretary PC Sethi that "politicians should learn to say no, while bureaucrats should learn to say yes" to drive home the point that they must take decisions without fear or favour. "Work for the people, not for the PM," sources quoted the PM as saying.
Another message was to simplify procedures and cut paperwork by weeding out "outdated and archaic rules, which, instead of serving the process of governance, are leading to unnecessary confusion". The PM suggested the secretaries make a beginning by cleaning up offices to "improve the workplace, which would automatically improve work culture".
Longer working hours for bureaucrats likely
NEW DELHI: With Prime Minister Narendra Modi setting a hectic pace for his ministers, babudom is abuzz with talk of a possible review of working hours for central government offices as well.
Though department of personnel and training (DoPT) officials on Wednesday said no formal proposal for longer working hours or a return to six-day week had been moved, they felt that given that most ministers were keeping longer hours and also working on Saturdays, senior bureaucrats and other staff may be asked to put in longer hours to assist them.
A DoPT official said debate about the desirability of restructuring the working hours may start if the political leadership so desires.
Political sources, however, said no proposal to extend either working hours or switch to a six-day week has even been mooted so far. It was former PM Rajiv Gandhi who started the five-day week. However, bureaucrats have been making frantic calls to their contacts in DoPT to confirm if reports of a possible corporatization of government departments, complete with longer working hours, were indeed true.
Interestingly, Gujarat government office timings stretch from 10.30 am to 6.10 pm, with the second and fourth Saturdays being off, along with Sundays.
With Modi having given clear directions to his ministers to show results that will set apart the NDA government from the "lacklustre and non-performing" UPA regime, the ministers are already clocking longer hours, setting a time-bound agenda for delivery.
This has made it imperative for secretaries, joint secretaries and their staff to remain in office to assist the minister. Central government offices at present have 40 working hours per week, with Saturday and Sunday being off days.
Though department of personnel and training (DoPT) officials on Wednesday said no formal proposal for longer working hours or a return to six-day week had been moved, they felt that given that most ministers were keeping longer hours and also working on Saturdays, senior bureaucrats and other staff may be asked to put in longer hours to assist them.
A DoPT official said debate about the desirability of restructuring the working hours may start if the political leadership so desires.
Political sources, however, said no proposal to extend either working hours or switch to a six-day week has even been mooted so far. It was former PM Rajiv Gandhi who started the five-day week. However, bureaucrats have been making frantic calls to their contacts in DoPT to confirm if reports of a possible corporatization of government departments, complete with longer working hours, were indeed true.
Interestingly, Gujarat government office timings stretch from 10.30 am to 6.10 pm, with the second and fourth Saturdays being off, along with Sundays.
With Modi having given clear directions to his ministers to show results that will set apart the NDA government from the "lacklustre and non-performing" UPA regime, the ministers are already clocking longer hours, setting a time-bound agenda for delivery.
This has made it imperative for secretaries, joint secretaries and their staff to remain in office to assist the minister. Central government offices at present have 40 working hours per week, with Saturday and Sunday being off days.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Longer-working-hours-for-bureaucrats-likely/articleshow/36076506.cms
"What is being checked is whether the bureaucrat is neutral in his work and does not let his political preferences cloud his decision-making activity," an official said. Modi himself works nearly 18 hours a day and his "I-mean-Business" approach is already percolating down the bureaucracy with most secretaries and other senior officials arriving in their offices sharp by 9 am and working late till 8 pm these days, very much like the new ministers. The changeover from a 6-day week to a 5-day week happened in 1985 - an initiative by the then prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi. A May 21, 1985 order had stressed a 5-day week was important for "improving the efficiency of the administration."
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/tough-questions-form-part-of-narendra-modis-plan-to-vet-performance-of-top-bureaucrats/articleshow/36076065.cms?prtpage=1
Tough questions form part of Narendra Modi's plan to vet performance of top bureaucrats
NEW DELHI: How good are you — and how much do you work? The Narendra Modi government is asking these questions of senior bureaucrats and planning to put in a new appraisal and working hour system.
Bureaucrats are being quietly appraised on parameters like their project delivery record, neutrality and dedication to work — plus, the Narendra Modi government is set to change a 29-year-old rule instituted by the Rajiv Gandhi government to ensure government officials put in more hours at work.
At least two senior officials in know of the developments have told ET that formal orders could soon be issued extending work hours from the existing limit of 40 hours a week. "This could be done by making each Saturday or alternate Saturdays working days," one senior government official said on condition of anonymity.
![Tough questions form part of Narendra Modi's plan to vet performance of top bureaucratsTough questions form part of Narendra Modi's plan to vet performance of top bureaucrats]( "Tough questions form part of Narendra Modi's plan to vet performance of top bureaucratsTough questions form part of Narendra Modi's plan to vet performance of top bureaucrats")
Appraisal could be basis for reshuffle for officials
"An alternative could be to stick to the 5-day week system but extend the daily work hours on the five working days from 8 am to 6 pm or even 8 am to 8 pm. The matter is being discussed," the official added. At present, the working hours for central government officials, as per an order issued in 1985, are 9 am to 5 am with a 30-minute lunch break and each weekend being off.Minister of State in Prime Minister's Office and Ministry of Personnel, Jitendra Singh, said he would not reveal if any move was afoot to increase the working hours for bureaucrats. "There is no official circular by us yet. If something is issued, we will duly inform you from the Prime Minister's Office," Singh told ET.
Asilent appraisal of top bureaucrats is also on that could be the basis for a reshuffle in secretary-level and other senior positions soon. An official of Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) aware of this exercise said bureaucrats are being assessed on four parameters: Past performance, quickness of delivery, dedication to work and neutrality.
"Past performance of a period of over a decade is being taken into consideration as well as achievements specific to quick delivery of targets. Dedication to work is a key parameter and bureaucrats devoting time to hanging out at clubs or page 3 activities may find themselves out in the cold in this government," this official told ET.
"Neutrality or political non-allegiance" is another key factor being analysed for bureaucrats who are holding senior positions in the government, the official quoted earlier said. Many bureaucrats right now in secretary-level and other senior positions are perceived to be close to the erstwhile UPA government since it was in power for the last decade and had appointed all of them to these posts. Modi has met all secretaries to the government on Wednesday evening to lay out a policy map for the bureaucracy.
Bureaucrats are being quietly appraised on parameters like their project delivery record, neutrality and dedication to work — plus, the Narendra Modi government is set to change a 29-year-old rule instituted by the Rajiv Gandhi government to ensure government officials put in more hours at work.
At least two senior officials in know of the developments have told ET that formal orders could soon be issued extending work hours from the existing limit of 40 hours a week. "This could be done by making each Saturday or alternate Saturdays working days," one senior government official said on condition of anonymity.
Appraisal could be basis for reshuffle for officials"An alternative could be to stick to the 5-day week system but extend the daily work hours on the five working days from 8 am to 6 pm or even 8 am to 8 pm. The matter is being discussed," the official added. At present, the working hours for central government officials, as per an order issued in 1985, are 9 am to 5 am with a 30-minute lunch break and each weekend being off.Minister of State in Prime Minister's Office and Ministry of Personnel, Jitendra Singh, said he would not reveal if any move was afoot to increase the working hours for bureaucrats. "There is no official circular by us yet. If something is issued, we will duly inform you from the Prime Minister's Office," Singh told ET.
Asilent appraisal of top bureaucrats is also on that could be the basis for a reshuffle in secretary-level and other senior positions soon. An official of Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) aware of this exercise said bureaucrats are being assessed on four parameters: Past performance, quickness of delivery, dedication to work and neutrality.
"Past performance of a period of over a decade is being taken into consideration as well as achievements specific to quick delivery of targets. Dedication to work is a key parameter and bureaucrats devoting time to hanging out at clubs or page 3 activities may find themselves out in the cold in this government," this official told ET.
"Neutrality or political non-allegiance" is another key factor being analysed for bureaucrats who are holding senior positions in the government, the official quoted earlier said. Many bureaucrats right now in secretary-level and other senior positions are perceived to be close to the erstwhile UPA government since it was in power for the last decade and had appointed all of them to these posts. Modi has met all secretaries to the government on Wednesday evening to lay out a policy map for the bureaucracy.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/tough-questions-form-part-of-narendra-modis-plan-to-vet-performance-of-top-bureaucrats/articleshow/36076065.cms?prtpage=1