Re-orient training programme for young civil servants: Par panel to LBSNAA

A Parliamentary Committee has asked the Mussoorie-based Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration LBSNAA to re-orient its training programme to make young civil servants sensitive to the needs of the public, especially the marginalised and the vulnerable.In its recent report, the panel recommended LBSNAA shifts its approach from one-size-fits-all training to need-based customized training.

A Parliamentary Committee has asked the Mussoorie-based Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA) to re-orient its training program to make young civil servants sensitive to the needs of the public, especially the marginalized and the vulnerable.

In its recent report, the panel recommended LBSNAA shifts its approach from 'one-size-fits-all training' to 'need-based customized training'. It is of the view that training should be continuous and it should be tailored to the needs of the individual, said the report of the department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice, on demands for grants (2022-23) pertaining to the Department of Personnel and Training.

The current training programs offered at LBSNAA, especially at the mid-career level, are based on the premise that all officers need training, that too, the same kind of training, it said.

The committee feels that this assumption is basically flawed, stated the report tabled in Parliament on March 24. Training needs vary from individual to individual and therefore, the committee recommends LBSNAA first assess the core competencies of the officer, then perform a gap analysis, determine the training needs and chalk out a training program accordingly, it said. ''The Committee is of the considered view that LBSNAA needs to re-orient its training program to make young civil servants sensitive to the needs of the general public, especially the marginalized and the vulnerable,'' the report said. LBSNAA needs to integrate classroom-based theoretical training with experiential training in real settings, it said. During training, LBSNAA may assign young officer trainees to tribal hamlets, remote villages, areas with harsh terrains and difficult conditions for two-three weeks, completely disconnected from mundane life and enable them to get first-hand experience of the challenges faced by these groups of people on day-to-basis, the report said. The committee is confident that this change will go a long way in bridging the gap between the government and the governed, it said.

The LBSNAA is the Government of India's premier institution for the training of higher civil services in the country. It imparts induction level and in-service training. The academy also conducts in-service and mid-career training programs for members of the IAS and induction training programmes for officers promoted to the IAS from state civil services. It also organizes workshops and seminars on various issues in public administration.