Have ‘extra’ political will to carry out reforms, says Modi

New Delhi: Stressing the need to “reform, perform and transform”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said political will was needed for reform, of which there was no dearth in his government. However, he added, the “perform” part of this must come from civil servants, while transformation is enabled by people’s participation.

“I do not lack it (political will), rather have an extra bit,” the PM said while addressing bureaucrats on Civil Service Day. Mr Modi said civil servants must ensure that every decision was taken while keeping the national interest in mind, and this should be their touchstone for taking a decision.

He noted that anonymity was one of the greatest strengths of the civil services. He cautioned officers that the use of social media should not lead to a decline in this strength, as social media and mobile governance are leveraged to connect people to benefits and government schemes.

Mr Modi said he banned mobile phones at his meetings as he often found officers checking social media sites in the middle of official discussions.

“I see these days that district-level officers are so busy, busy, that most of their time goes into it (social media). I have stopped the entry (of mobile phones) in my meetings as they (officers) would take them out and start (checking out social media sites),” he said.

The social media should be used for the welfare of the people  and not for self-praise, he told bureaucrats. He said conditions today were quite different from two decades ago, and would evolve much further over the next few years.

Elaborating on this, the PM said earlier, the government was almost wholly the sole provider of goods and services, which left a lot of scope for ignoring one’s shortcomings. However, now, very often, the people feel the private sector offers better services than the government. Mr Modi said with alternatives available in several areas, the responsibilities of government officers had increased. He added this increase was not in terms of the scope of work, but in terms of the challenge.

The Prime Minister emphasised the importance of competition, which brings qualitative change. He said the sooner the attitude of the government can change from being a “regulator” to an “enabler”, the faster this challenge of competition will become an opportunity.

Describing this day as one of “rededication,” the PM said civil servants were well aware of their strengths and capabilities, challenges and responsibilities. Mr Modi emphasised that while the absence of government in a sphere of activity should be perceptible, its presence in a sphere of activity should not become a burden. He asked civil servants to strive towards such arrangements.

Noting the quantum jump in the applications for Civil Service Day awards, from less than 100 last year to over 500 this year, the PM said the focus should now be on improving quality, and making excellence a habit.

He urged senior officers to ensure that “experience does not become a burden that stifles innovation of younger officers”.