Author: Jatin Gandhi
Publication: Hindustan Times
Date: February 2, 2007
URL: http://hindustantimes.com/news/181_1918293,0008.htm
Indian bureaucrats now need an American stamp
of approval before they can qualify as top brass. Starting this year, three
US-based universities will train officers at different stages of their careers
and only those who get a 'satisfactory' report will be empanelled for promotion.
The government has chosen the John F Kennedy
School of Government (KSG) at Harvard University, Duke University, and Syracuse
University to carry out the task. Initiated by the Ministry of Personnel,
Public Grievances and Pensions, the move is a follow-up of the recommendations
of an expert panel headed by YK Alagh. It is part of Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh's ambitious plan to revamp the bureaucracy.
The first module of training for 95 IAS officers
with 28 years of service concluded last week. The four-week training programme
on 'Governance Challenges for India' was held at the Indian Institute of Management,
Ahmedabad (IIM-A) and was designed jointly with KSG.
The officers who attended it will need a certificate
from KSG before they can move on to the next rank of additional secretary
or secretary.
Many officers are angry. "There is a
lot of irritation in the batch," a joint secretary who participated in
the programme told Hindustan Times on Saturday. "Neither KSG nor IIM-A
have the experience or competence to issue us certificates," the officer
said.
Another officer said the programme was 'out
of context'. "The case studies were not from our situation. The complexities
of India are very different," he said.
But the government is unfazed. On Wednesday,
the ministry signed a similar agreement with Syracuse University, New York,
and IIM Bangalore to train officers with 15 years of service in April. Duke
University will conduct a programme for officers with nine years of service.
"There has been criticism... But this
is just the beginning and things will get better," said LK Joshi, who
signed the agreements as secretary of the ministry. Satyananda Mishra, who
replaced Joshi as the ministry's secretary on Thursday, was unavailable for
comment.
E-mail Jatin Gandhi: jatin.gandhi@hindustantimes.com
