Key Points

The interaction was part of the ongoing Assistant Secretary programme, wherein the IAS Officer Trainees are attached to 46 Central Ministries for a period of 8 weeks from April 1 to May 30, 2025, giving them early exposure to policy formulation and the workings of the Central Government.

Dr Jitendra Singh attributed this landmark development to the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, under whose tenure, women-led initiatives have gained unprecedented momentum. "The Prime Minister has always been a champion of women empowerment. This record representation is a testament to his unwavering support for inclusive and progressive governance," the Minister said.

The Minister reflected on the inception of the Assistant Secretary Programme in 2015, calling it Prime Minister Modi's brainchild to give young officers real-time governance exposure at the beginning of their careers. "The programme has brought a resurgence of confidence among officers. During the pandemic, many of these officers performed remarkably when called upon for district-level crisis management," he added.

As the initiative marks its 10th anniversary, the Union Minister noted its outstanding impact on nurturing capable and confident civil servants. He also celebrated the democratisation of the Civil Services, with increasing representation from states like Punjab, Haryana, and the North-East, regions that earlier saw fewer selections.

The Minister took pride in the academic and professional diversity of the batch, mentioning that 99 officers hail from engineering backgrounds, along with many from medicine and other technical fields. "For years, I wondered why technocrats joined the civil services. But now, I realise the technical nature of flagship Government programmes -- from Digital India to Smart Cities-- makes their presence a national asset," he said.

Dr Singh praised the young average age (22-26 years) of the batch, which provides a long-span career trajectory to contribute to the nation. He urged the officers to stay technologically ahead and make full use of the iGOT Karmayogi platform, a digital learning ecosystem offering continuously updated capacity-building modules.

"You are fortunate to be in the best of times, when India is rapidly moving towards becoming Viksit Bharat @2047," he emphasised.

In an open-floor dialogue with the young officers, Dr Singh expressed support for a more dynamic and flexible civil service ecosystem, where officers may be allowed to gain exposure outside government for a few years and return as domain specialists -- a model that he termed "a win-win for both the officer and the government."

On the issue of bridging the digital divide, the Minister called technology a great leveller, citing examples like the Swamitva Mission, which eliminates the need for revenue officials by leveraging drone-based property mapping. "This has democratised access to land records and decentralised service delivery at the grassroots," he said.

Dr Singh also stressed the importance of grievance redressal mechanisms, urging the trainees to study the CPGRAMS platform, which he described as a global benchmark. "Nearly 26 lakh grievances have been disposed of with a 98 per cent resolution rate, most within 13 days," he shared.

Yet, he reminded the officers that human intelligence and empathy must complement technology. "Despite resolving grievances technically, many citizens still feel emotionally dissatisfied. That's why we have created a 'human desk' to provide emotional closure, proving that governance is not just administrative but deeply human," the Minister remarked.

In a moving exchange, one of the Officer Trainees quoted Dr Singh's past speech, "One retires from service, not from citizenship." Responding to this, the Minister spoke about initiatives to involve retired civil servants through a Digital Repository of Expertise, allowing India to harness their knowledge. He also highlighted the Anubhav Awards, which encourage retiring officers to document their experiences for the benefit of future generations.

As the interaction concluded, Dr Singh urged the young civil servants to uphold the highest standards of integrity, accountability, and service, aligning their efforts with the spirit of Antyodaya -- working for the last man standing.

"This batch of IAS officers is not only the youngest and most diverse -- but also the most representative of New India's aspirations. Let your work reflect the hopes of a billion people," said the Minister.

- IANS