Mission Karmayogi 2.0 to institutionalise capacity building reforms across govt: CBC chairperson

The Capacity Building Commission plans to launch Mission Karmayogi 2.0, a new phase of the NPCSCB, with a sharper focus on institutionalising capacity building reforms in government systems.

The next phase of Mission Karmayogi will have a sharper focus on institutionalising the capacity building reforms initiated under the National Programme for Civil Services Capacity Building (NPCSCB), the chairperson of the Capacity Building Commission (CBC), S Radha Chauhan, said on Monday.

Launched in 2020, the NPCSCB, popularly known as Mission Karmayogi, marked a major shift in the training architecture for government employees. It sought to move capacity building from episodic training programmes to a more structured, role-based, and competency-driven system rooted in Indian ethos and aligned with national priorities.

''The next phase, i.e., Mission Karmayogi 2.0, will build on these foundations and take the reform agenda deeper into government systems, with greater emphasis on states, frontline institutions, and the organisational capacities required to absorb and apply individual learning,'' Chauhan told PTI in an interview.

She said the proposed programme ''will be a leap'' in the aspirations that ''we have for Viksit Bharat''.

The CBC, which is the custodian of the Mission Karmayogi framework, has in the past few years helped set up the foundational practices, frameworks, and institutional mechanisms needed for a new capacity building ecosystem.

These include role-based and competency-linked learning pathways, common quality standards for learning content, and the use of integrated government online training (iGOT) Karmayogi as a national platform for digital learning, said Chauhan, former secretary of the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT).

The next phase seeks to institutionalise these reforms so that capacity building becomes an integral part of government functioning, rather than a stand-alone training activity, she said, adding that this would mean embedding learning into roles, governance priorities, systems, processes, and institutional culture across ministries, departments, states, and frontline agencies.

Giving details of the shift enabled by Mission Karmayogi, Chauhan said the quality of learning available to public servants has been standardised through the programme.

A public servant in Bhopal, Thiruvananthapuram, or Nagaland can access the same quality of learning content because it is available on iGOT, and standardisation has been ensured, she said.

''Therefore, you are reaching the quality of capacity building uniformly across the length and breadth of the country. That is a major shift and output that has happened,'' Chauhan said when asked about the changes being brought in by Mission Karmayogi.

The next stage will go beyond access to quality learning. It will focus on how individual capacities developed through Mission Karmayogi can translate into improved organisational performance, the CBC chief said.

This is especially important in an era of rapidly evolving technology and artificial intelligence, where public institutions need not only trained individuals, but also adaptive systems, modern processes, data-driven decision-making, and institutional cultures that can absorb new capabilities, said Chauhan, a 1988 batch retired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of Uttar Pradesh cadre.

She said a key priority will be preparing public servants and government institutions for an AI-enabled governance ecosystem, and the commission is working towards further developing the capacity of civil servants to deal with an artificial intelligence-led agentic ecosystem.

AI-related learning has also been taken to frontline workers such as ''panchayat sachiv, urban local body representatives, anganwadi workers, constables, traffic constables, people who are the face of government for the citizens'', Chauhan said.

''This approach reflects the broader vision of Mission Karmayogi 2.0. Capacity building is not limited to senior officials or formal training institutions. It must reach every level of government and be supported by organisations that are equipped to use new skills meaningfully in everyday governance and service delivery,'' she said.

Chauhan said the learnings and reform solutions emerging from Mission Karmayogi are now drawing international interest with some countries showing interest in adopting the programme's approach.

The commission is also exploring how India's capacity-building platform and governance structures can be shared globally as a digital public good for capacity building.

''During the India AI Impact summit, we launched a global alliance for digital capacity building. In that we have had many countries approaching us on Mission Karmayogi...The Asian Development Bank has shown interest in working with us. Brazil is a country that has a lot of common interests with us. So we are trying to engage with them,'' she said.

Chauhan said the commission is looking at several partners to start a conversation on how the capacity-building platform, along with the governance structures created under Mission Karmayogi, can be shared globally.

''This we have already initiated, and we are in the initial round of talks with many other countries. The Ministry of External Affairs is helping us also,'' the CBC chief said.

''Mission Karmayogi 2.0 thus signals the next stage of India's capacity-building journey. Domestically, the focus is on institutionalising reforms so that individual learning leads to stronger organisations and better governance outcomes. Globally, India is beginning to share its capacity building architecture, platforms, and reform learnings with partner countries,'' Chauhan said.