HYDERABAD: Stating that present-day civil servants were following and setting all wrong precedents, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Sunday suggested that IAS officers stem the tide of this trend of encouraging wrongdoings.
The chief minister was unveiling Life of Karmayogi: Memoir of a Civil Servant, authored by retired IAS officer M Gopalakrishna Naidu.
Addressing the gathering, Revanth said: “These days, people who are entering civil services are following all the wrong precedents.”
“If a political executive asks them to do one wrong, civil servants are doing two to three wrongs. This is not good for society,” he added.
“Even during their training period, a few officials are sitting in police stations and interfering in civil cases. This is unfortunate. This needs to change,” the CM said.
Stressing the need for the IAS officers to change their attitude, he said: “In the past, district collectors used to make field-level visits. They used to travel to remote villages. But nowadays, they are not even stepping out of AC rooms.”
Comparing the work ethics of present-day civil servants with that of their predecessors, Revanth said: “In the past, if the political executive proposed something, around 80 per cent of civil servants would explain all the issues... pros and cons pertaining to the issue concerned. They used to enlighten the leaders about the positive and negative consequences. But nowadays, that practice has declined.”
The chief minister said that the responsibility of civil servants is to help political leaders make the right decisions. “If the political executive gives any orders, the civil servants should first analyse the consequences. They should serve as the hands that help leaders make right decisions and frame policies,” he added.
Urging civil servants to work with dedication for the upliftment of the poor, he said that the government will recognise the services of officials who show commitment towards society.
Lauding Gopalakrishna Naidu, the CM said that the author has “witnessed all events from the time of the country’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru to the present PM Narendra Modi”.
“Six decades of his experience is reposited in this book. Anything can be bought but not experience. Depicting six decades of experience in a book form is a big task, which Gopalakrishna Naidu succeeded doing. With his vast experience, he envisioned the future,” the CM said.
Chief Secretary Santhi Kumari, Special Chief Secretary of Finance department K Ramakrishna Rao and several officials attended the event.