Prime Minister addresses IAS Officers of the 2014 batch

Prime Minister addresses IAS Officers of the 2014 batch

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi addressed here today the 2014 batch of IAS officers posted as Assistant Secretaries in the Government of India. He advised the young IAS officers to remain sensitive to their circumstances and surroundings, in order to be able to effectively connect with the people of India.

Addressing at the Inaugural Session of Assistant Secretaries, the Prime Minister said that they have a great opportunity to enhance their skills and learning, far beyond what they had imbibed during their training so far. He urged them to use the next three months, to add value to their own skill-sets, and also attempt to add value to the working of the Departments they have been attached with. He particularly mentioned the use of technology in governance, and asked the young officers to work towards technology upgradation in the working of Government.

The Prime Minister urged the officers not to be overawed by hierarchy, and to be frank and fearless in their interaction with senior officers during the next three months of their attachment as Assistant Secretaries to the Union Government. He mentioned that this is a new feature of IAS training begun with the 2013 batch, and it ensures that IAS officers have a stint at the Centre right at the beginning of their career – an opportunity that their seniors may not have had.

Speaking on the occasion, the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh said that India has inherited the legacy of Civil Services from the Britishers, where the Indian Civil Service Officers were designated as Revenue Collectors and in the independent India, these IAS officers are designated as Development Commissioners. He said that the Government policies focus on good governance through ‘minimum government and maximum governance’. He further said that the concept of Assistant Secretaries has been introduced by the Government last year and this is the second batch to have this privilege which has been flagged off the Prime Minister today.

Earlier in his welcome address the Cabinet Secretary Shri P. K. Sinha said that the posting of Assistant Secretaries will familiarise these officers with the working and policy formulation system in the Government of India. He said that out of these 172 Assistant Secretaries, 140 are with a professional background. Shri Sinha also said that these Assistant Secretaries will be mainly focusing on different schemes of the Government such as Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT), National scholarship scheme, e-governance, e-office and MyGov platform. These officers will also be exposed to the application of space technology, websites of different ministries and good governance initiatives of the Government.

Dr P. K. Mishra, Additional Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, Shri B.P Sharma, Secretary, DoPT , secretaries of the Government of India and other senior officers were also present on the occasion.

PIB