UPSC at 100: Dr P.K. Mishra Outlines New Vision for India’s Future Civil Services

In addition to conducting examinations, UPSC’s advisory responsibilities—ranging from promotions to disciplinary matters—have played a pivotal role in shaping a professional and accountable bureaucracy.

In New Delhi today, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister Dr. P.K. Mishra delivered a comprehensive and forward-looking address during the Plenary Session of the UPSC Shatabdi Sammelan Programme, marking a historic milestone—100 years of the Union Public Service Commission. Speaking to a distinguished gathering of current and former civil servants, scholars, and policymakers, he lauded UPSC’s century-long commitment to merit, fairness, excellence, and institutional integrity, calling it one of India’s most respected Constitutional bodies.

Dr. Mishra highlighted that this centenary celebration is not merely a commemorative event but a tribute to the visionary founders of the Constitution, as well as the leaders and administrators who shaped the Commission through its formative decades. He praised the steadfastness with which successive UPSC Chairpersons, Members, officers, and staff defended fairness and impartiality, even during periods that challenged institutional autonomy.

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Honouring Generations of Civil Servants

Reflecting on the Commission’s legacy, Dr. Mishra noted that generations of civil servants—drawn from India’s diversity of regions, backgrounds, and experiences—have silently upheld the ideals of public duty, neutrality, and nation-building. These officers, he said, strengthened India’s institutions, maintained administrative continuity, and anchored the constitutional order.

Their contributions, often devoid of public recognition, included shaping policy transitions, steering reforms, responding to crises, and upholding constitutional morality. This quiet dedication, Dr. Mishra remarked, forms the moral backbone of India’s administrative system.

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From Public Service Commission to UPSC: A Legacy of Evolution

Tracing UPSC’s historical journey, Dr. Mishra recalled that it began as the Public Service Commission in 1926, later formalized as the Federal Public Service Commission under the Government of India Act, 1935. With independence, it assumed its present constitutional identity as the Union Public Service Commission.

Across these phases, its core mandate remained—conducting rigorous examinations to select India’s civil servants, popularly described by Sardar Patel as the nation’s “steel frame.” Over the years, the examination process has been continuously refined to reflect the expanding demands of modern governance, while unwaveringly preserving its foundational pillars of fairness and merit.

In addition to conducting examinations, UPSC’s advisory responsibilities—ranging from promotions to disciplinary matters—have played a pivotal role in shaping a professional and accountable bureaucracy.

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Pratibha Setu: Expanding Opportunities for India’s Youth

Highlighting recent advancements, Dr. Mishra praised Pratibha Setu, a transformative digital initiative that connects high-scoring civil service aspirants who reach the final stages of the exam with job opportunities across sectors. Linked with the National Career Service, this platform ensures that the pool of talented aspirants does not go unnoticed and continues contributing to nation-building, regardless of examination outcomes.

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Evolving Role of Civil Services in a Transforming Nation

Dr. Mishra reflected on the dramatic evolution of civil services over the last century. Before independence and in its immediate aftermath, administration centred on law and order, taxation, and foundational public administration. After independence, civil servants took on the massive responsibility of building institutions, guiding development planning, and expanding basic services.

In recent years, however, new forces—technology, urbanisation, climate change, disasters, and complex socio-economic transitions—have reshaped the governance paradigm. According to Dr. Mishra, governance today requires collaboration rather than hierarchy, flexibility rather than rigidity, and innovation instead of incrementalism.

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A Decade of Transformation: From Processes to Outcomes

Dr. Mishra highlighted a profound shift in the administrative mindset that has occurred over the past decade. India’s governance priorities have moved:

• from process compliance to outcome-oriented delivery,

• from incremental changes to rapid and transformative reforms,

• from siloed departmental work to interoperable digital systems,

• from a state that delivers services to one that partners with citizens (Jan Bhagidari).

This transition, he explained, is evident across sectors—digital payments, health, logistics, social protection, skilling, taxation, and infrastructure—many of which now set global benchmarks. India’s ambitions also extend into frontier domains such as quantum technologies, space innovation, renewable energy, and the blue economy.

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Viksit Bharat 2047: A New Administrative Vision

Dr. Mishra stated that India stands at an unprecedented inflection point as it advances toward the goal of Viksit Bharat 2047. He outlined four forces shaping this journey:

1. A Volatile Global Landscape

The world is witnessing intense competition in technology, cyber security, critical minerals, space, and supply chains. Civil servants must become interpreters of complexity, strategic thinkers, and guardians of national interest.

2. Rapid Technological Disruptions

Breakthroughs in AI, robotics, synthetic biology, and quantum computing demand officers who are intellectually agile and ethically grounded, capable of working seamlessly with innovators and technologists.

3. Shift Toward Capability-Driven Development

India is moving from input-led economic progress to competency- and innovation-driven growth, requiring civil servants who prioritize outcomes, experimentation, and accountability.

4. Global Competition for Talent

To remain attractive to India’s ambitious and globally aware youth, civil services must project purpose, autonomy, challenge, and societal impact—qualities that define modern public service.

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Mission Karmayogi: The Future of Capacity Building

Central to this transformation is Mission Karmayogi, a groundbreaking initiative aimed at creating a competency-driven, technologically enabled, lifelong-learning ecosystem for civil servants. Dr. Mishra emphasized the shift from rule-based systems to role-based responsibilities, from uniform training modules to continuous skill enhancement, and from isolated functioning to embedded collaboration.

The iGOT-Karmayogi platform, with over 3,000 courses curated with global best practices, is creating a new administrative culture—one that learns even while serving, adapts quickly, and remains future-ready.

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Civil Services at the Heart of India’s Aspirational Journey

In his concluding remarks, Dr. Mishra stated that civil servants will be the driving force of India’s march toward becoming a developed nation by 2047. He urged officers to:

• think across domains and sectors,

• combine ethical judgment with administrative competence,

• embrace data literacy while staying connected with citizens,

• anchor their work in humility, integrity, and public purpose, and

• commit to continuous learning and leadership.

Dr. Mishra reiterated that the coming decades will test the resilience, creativity, and dedication of India’s civil services—but also offer unprecedented opportunities to shape the nation’s destiny.