30 Jun 2018
Hon’ble Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Chief Secretary Malay Kumar De, DGP, Surajit Kar Purakayastha, Principal Secretaries Atri Bhattacharjee and Prabhat Kumar Mishra…colleagues and friends
At the outset on behalf of all the civil servants present here – from the IAS, IPS, Forest Service, All India Services, the WBCS and allied services, let me thank the Hon’ble CM for making it a point to publicly acknowledge our contribution to the nation building and development .
Compared to other commemorations and days, this is a new celebration, and in West Bengal, we could start it because of her support, encouragement and mentorship from last year : Thank You , madam CM, preparations for this day gives us an occasion to reflect on what we have done, and how we can improve upon it...... And we have accomplished a lot in almost every field of endeavour .... from Ease of Doing Business to Krishi Karman awards, from Kanyashree awards to self sufficiency in most commodities, from the laurels under SHGs to the campaign for Safe Drive Save Life, we have perhaps accomplished so many milestones that we have lost count of. But as the Hon’ble CM is aware that hard work and contribution is often not visible: we are the ground keepers, time keepers and conscience keepers: we hit no century – but there would be no cricket without us, and as we showed during the World Cup Football, we can get our fields in order in record time, we can manage any number of footfalls anywhere: from the Boi Mela to the Ganga Sagar.
Friends, as we are celebrating the Civil Services Day, could we add something new which is not already in the public domain? Yes. Because Sardar Patel’s stirring comment about the challenge of India, becoming, and remaining united is perhaps more valid today, than it was at the time of Independence.
“You will not have a united India, unless you have a good All India service, which has the independence to speak out its mind !”
Its true that a wide range of institutions have started to play a significant role in making us proud Indians – sports, Bollywood, global brands, network of professionals, media, educational institutions, and of course, pan India political produces, and several state organisations; but at the base of it all – we have the tripod of Governance, Development Interventions and the Rule of Law – and without these essential conditions, all other achievements will come to nought.
And this is where the challenge lies. Also this is the challenge we share with the political executive. How does the civil service work with and under the direction of the political executive to ensure the rule of law? How does the civil service ensure that the democratic process balances the rule of law on the one hand with the growing expectations, which the political executive aptly articulates?
The answer perhaps lies in our working closely and harmoniously with all our stakeholders, at all levels, and there are three takeaways that we have to offer. Firstly, we have to master the skill of non-adversarial communication, in which attentive listening plays a very significant role. Second, we have to ensure that our institutional arrangements leverage new technology. We cannot lag behind, and we are glad that in our state, we have a positive eco-system to take this forward. Last but not the least is the challenge of expectations – of the people from us, and ours from the political executive – to be treated with equity and fairness, and in a manner which allows for our personal and professional growth so that we can put our best foot forward in the service of our nation.
And before I close, I extend my greetings and congratulations to all on the Civil Services Day and again thank Madam Chief Minister for gracing the occasion.
JAI HIND