NEW DELHI, Nov 29: President Pranab Mukherjee today said a “slow decision” making process is not acceptable if we want our country to develop faster but also underlined that he did not advocate taking hasty decisions.
“If we want our country to develop faster, we cannot afford to be slow in taking decisions. I am not saying that decisions have to be taken in a haste.
“But to prolong or avoid taking decisions is not acceptable. Informed decisions based on facts, figures and realistic assessment to the best of one’s ability are sine qua non for good governance,” Mukherjee said.
Delivering the fourth UPSC foundation day lecture on “Governance and Public Service”, the President said Jawaharlal Nehru was not in favour of continuation of Indian civil services, set-up by the British, but views of then Home Minister Vallabhbhai Patel prevailed who said people who served British empire will build the new India.
“If we look back, perhaps we can say with great satisfaction the civil servants who were trained to protect the interests of the empire built-up steel plants in India, hydel powers in India, community development projects, created finest diplomacy…,” Mukherjee said.
He said the UPSC is the nursery of administrative ethics.
“It is the alma mater for selection of men and women of excellence, as officers in the service of the nation. Its role in human resource management of the Government is crucial as it has to recommend the best candidates from amongst the millions of aspirants,” the President said.
He said public services have a lot to do for moving toward a globally competitive governance model for India.
“We have to develop our public administration into a dynamic and result oriented bureaucracy,” he said.
Mukherjee said improving the governance standards calls for proactive measures with governance and administrative reforms.
“Transparency and accountability are two basic elements of good governance. Transparency refers to the availability of information to the general public and clarity about the functioning of governmental institutions. Transparency enhances predictability as it helps government organisations to function more objectively,” he said.
The President said the Right to Information Act has made the administrative machinery more responsive and efficient in meeting the needs of the masses.
“There has been a paradigm shift in the developmental approach. Citizens have been provided security for food, education and job by empowering them through entitlements backed by legal guarantees,” he said.
While lauding the developments, the President also cautioned against corruption being one of the biggest factors that hinders efficient performance of the economy.
“There is a need to eliminate interface in the delivery of services. It is also necessary to adopt non-discretionary approach towards decision-making and initiate two-way communication with the users,” he said.
“Governance is a holistic approach, involving all the pillars of the State, including provision of justice. The need for judicial reforms and initiation of measures like greater use of information technology to clear pending court cases is essential. Simplification of laws is also needed for better governance,” the President said. (PTI)
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