Excelsior Correspondent
NEW DELHI, Dec 25: On the occasion of Good Governance Day today, Union Home Minister Amit Shah launched “Good Governance Index 2021” at a function organised by the Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances (DARPG) and Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) at Vigyan Bhawan here.
Speaking on the occasion, Amit Shah dwelt at length on the hallmarks and pro-poor decisions taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the last seven and half years while Dr Jitendra Singh, the Minister Incharge DARPG and DoPT, unfolded PM Modi’s Governance Model.
Prominent among those who attended the event were Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla, DoPT Secretary Pradeep Tripathi, DARPG Secretary Sanjay Singh, Special Secretary DARPG V Srinivas, senior officers from various ministries of Government of India as well as senior government functionaries and administrators connected from 23 locations in different States and Union Territories of India.
Amit Shah said that in the last 70 years, several government schemes were launched but the poor remained the same. It was for the first time that there was a Government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi which had addressed every sector in a wholesome manner. He referred to houses being provided to more than 2 Crore people, Cooking Cylinders being made available to 14 Crore and the target of drinking water in every house by December 2022. In addition, he said, during Corona, over 80 Crore people received Ration free of cost.
Amit Shah further said that the Modi government brought in such a policy which could eliminate the root cause of the problem. Technology was brought for the convenience and comfort of common citizens. He also referred to vaccination being received by more than 100 Cr people.
Dr Jitendra Singh, speaking on the occasion, said that soon after Narendar Modi took over as Prime Minister in 2014, one of the earliest decisions taken by him was to end the practice of getting certificates or documents attested by a gazetted officer. This was not only a governance reform but also sent out a message to every nook and corner of the country that the government headed by Modi had the capacity to trust the youth of this country and was ready to take them along after earning their respect and trust. Similarly, he said, abolition of interview had provided a level playing field for all the job aspirants.
Dr Jitendra Singh also informed that from next year onwards, there will be a Common Eligibility Test (CET) for all the Government jobs. This, he said, will be a huge game changer because many youth from lower economic strata as well as women aspirants found it unaffordable and also inconvenient to make themselves available for entrance tests for jobs in different departments at different centres. This combined test, he said, will have at least one Examination Center in each of the over 750 districts of India.