Bureaucrats work overtime to draw project ideas

New Delhi: For the past five days, all ministers and the bureaucracy is working overtime as a follow-up to the Prime Minister’s exhortation to elicit ideas on government schemes. Sources disclosed that since Monday, all deputy secretaries and above rank are meeting at the ministers’ residence after the end of the day’s Parliament session to share views on presentations that were recently given to the Prime Minister on various social sector schemes. The three-to-four-hour-long “idea exchange” sessions that go on till 10 ended on Friday, after which the secretaries of the ministries are expected to send a review report to the PMO.

Calling it an exercise towards “team-building” and for “generating ideas”, sources attending the sessions disclosed, “The idea is to cull out and draw an action plan by involving the bureaucracy into all the core areas. Whatever emerged among the group of secretaries that presented ideas and suggestions to the PM is discussed with the minister and the whole bureaucracy these days.”

The health secretary, secretary (health research) and secretary (Ayush) are giving presentations on all social sector schemes these days at Union health minister J.P. Nadda’s residence. The lengthy “knowledge-sharing” discussions over “pakoras” end with dinner at the minister’s residence.

Sources said that during the presentations, questions are asked related to the theme of the presentation and bureaucrats are asked to give their suggestions.

“The activity is more of an idea exchange and how to percolate the vision and get their ideas to improve the health of the country,” sources said.

The presentations are not area-specific, which means that health ministry officials are getting presentations not only related to health but other areas as well, like education, agriculture, employment, irrigation, water etc. “The vision to involve officers of all levels and to cover different subjects is felt to widen the horizon,” said one official, adding that “the job of a bureaucrat is not fixed to one area. They have to move to different departments, this way they are getting nuances of other ministries too.”

The sessions are a follow-up to presentations held by the PM. In January, secretaries were asked to come up with ideas for a transformative change in various areas of governance, following which two groups of secretaries presented their ideas and suggestions on accelerated growth with inclusion and equity, employment generation strategies to Mr Modi.