NEW DELHI: The principle of `perform or perish' could soon apply to babudom as well. Non-performing senior bureaucrats are in danger of being booted out if the government accepts the recommendations of the second Administrative Reforms Commission (ARC), which in its latest report on Friday proposed sacking of government servants after 20 years of service if they are found to be unfit.
Besides recommending a performance-based system for bureaucrats, ARC has also came out with a number of radical suggestions for revamping the Civil Services Examination (CSE) system, including changing the age criteria, number of attempts and subject requirements at the graduation level for aspirants of IAS, IFS, IPS and other Group A and B central services.
Suggesting new conditions of performance-based appointments and continuation of service, the ARC report - Refurbishing of Personnel Administration - said that all public servants should be subjected to two intensive reviews on completion of 14 years and 20 years of service, respectively.
It said: "Their (civil servants) further continuance beyond 20 years will depend on the outcome of these reviews. It should be expressly provided that all new recruitments will be for a period of 20 years and their continuance beyond that would depend on intensive reviews".
ARC, headed by Congress leader M Veerappa Moily, has for this purpose suggested bringing a new civil services law with provisions of performance-based continuation of service, accountability and new system of promotion and cadre allotment. The 377-page report also talks about mandatory training at different stages of a civil servant's career.
Moily, while releasing the report, said: "Every government servant should undergo mandatory training at the induction stage and also periodically during his or her career. Successful completion of these trainings should be a minimum necessary condition for confirmation in service and subsequent promotions.''
The objective of mid-career training should be to develop domain knowledge and competence required for the changing job profile of the officer, he said.
ARC, which has so far brought out nine reports on different subjects including public order, human resources and right to information, also recommends a new appraisal system for bureaucrats which, it said, should not only be transparent but also based on modern management techniques.
Recommending a system of consultative appraisals, it said: "The government should expand the scope of the present performance appraisal system of its employees to a comprehensive performance management system (PMS).''
The report said the annual performance agreements should be signed between the department minister and the secretary of the ministry or heads of departments, providing physical and verifiable details of the work to be done during a financial year. "The actual performance should be assessed by a third party with reference to the annual performance agreement,'' it said.
ARC also suggests setting up a central civil services authority under the proposed civil services bill in order to create a top central body to not only supervize all rules and regulations concerning civil servants but also to devise a formula for cadre allotment, foreign postings necessary mid-career training.
For motivating civil servants, the report said there was a need to recognize outstanding work. It said selections of foreign assignments should be made on the basis of CCSA recommendations.
On disciplinary proceedings, it said the proposed civil services law should have a provision to convert the present oral inquiry process into a disciplinary meeting or interview to be conducted by a superior officer in a summary manner, without the trappings and procedures borrowed from court trials.
On relations between the political executive and civil servants, the panel said there was a need to safeguard the political neutrality and impartiality of civil services. "The onus for this lies equally on the political executive and the civil services,'' it said.![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_b.png?x-id=eafcb6e5-cb4e-4042-9a85-98fdc39f39ee)
Besides recommending a performance-based system for bureaucrats, ARC has also came out with a number of radical suggestions for revamping the Civil Services Examination (CSE) system, including changing the age criteria, number of attempts and subject requirements at the graduation level for aspirants of IAS, IFS, IPS and other Group A and B central services.
Suggesting new conditions of performance-based appointments and continuation of service, the ARC report - Refurbishing of Personnel Administration - said that all public servants should be subjected to two intensive reviews on completion of 14 years and 20 years of service, respectively.
It said: "Their (civil servants) further continuance beyond 20 years will depend on the outcome of these reviews. It should be expressly provided that all new recruitments will be for a period of 20 years and their continuance beyond that would depend on intensive reviews".
ARC, headed by Congress leader M Veerappa Moily, has for this purpose suggested bringing a new civil services law with provisions of performance-based continuation of service, accountability and new system of promotion and cadre allotment. The 377-page report also talks about mandatory training at different stages of a civil servant's career.
Moily, while releasing the report, said: "Every government servant should undergo mandatory training at the induction stage and also periodically during his or her career. Successful completion of these trainings should be a minimum necessary condition for confirmation in service and subsequent promotions.''
The objective of mid-career training should be to develop domain knowledge and competence required for the changing job profile of the officer, he said.
ARC, which has so far brought out nine reports on different subjects including public order, human resources and right to information, also recommends a new appraisal system for bureaucrats which, it said, should not only be transparent but also based on modern management techniques.
Recommending a system of consultative appraisals, it said: "The government should expand the scope of the present performance appraisal system of its employees to a comprehensive performance management system (PMS).''
The report said the annual performance agreements should be signed between the department minister and the secretary of the ministry or heads of departments, providing physical and verifiable details of the work to be done during a financial year. "The actual performance should be assessed by a third party with reference to the annual performance agreement,'' it said.
ARC also suggests setting up a central civil services authority under the proposed civil services bill in order to create a top central body to not only supervize all rules and regulations concerning civil servants but also to devise a formula for cadre allotment, foreign postings necessary mid-career training.
For motivating civil servants, the report said there was a need to recognize outstanding work. It said selections of foreign assignments should be made on the basis of CCSA recommendations.
On disciplinary proceedings, it said the proposed civil services law should have a provision to convert the present oral inquiry process into a disciplinary meeting or interview to be conducted by a superior officer in a summary manner, without the trappings and procedures borrowed from court trials.
On relations between the political executive and civil servants, the panel said there was a need to safeguard the political neutrality and impartiality of civil services. "The onus for this lies equally on the political executive and the civil services,'' it said.
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