Jitendra Singh on Tuesday gave a pep talk to 20 civil services toppers on Tuesday.
Union minister Jitendra Singh on Tuesday gave a pep talk to 20 civil services toppers, saying they are entering the government at one of the best times in the history of post-independent India, when under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the country was on the ascent and would soon be a front line nation of the world.
During the informal chat with the toppers, Mr Singh enquired about their family and future aspirations, a statement issued by the Personnel Ministry said.
He also noted the demographic change which has taken place in the profile of toppers in the last few years.
The Minister of State for Personnel, said, while till about a decade ago only a few states repeatedly figured in the list of toppers, but today we have toppers from Haryana, Punjab and Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, which is relatively a new phenomenon.
Similarly, he said, virtually every year there is one or more than one woman candidate among the first three toppers.
The minister felicitated the toppers of the Civil Services Examination (CSE) 2019, including Pradeep Singh (first rank), who hails from Haryana; Jatin Kishore (second rank) of Delhi; and Pratibha Verma (third position), whose home state is Uttar Pradesh.
During the interaction, Mr Singh said, for the last five years or so, he had introduced in the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) a new tradition of personally inviting the all-India toppers to the DoPT headquarters at North Block here and felicitating them along with presentation of testimonials.
However, this year's ceremony could not be held in the same format because of the constraints of the pandemic and therefore, a video conference is being held with the all-India toppers located in different parts of the country, he said.
Mr Singh said the presence of 12 engineers in the first 25 toppers of this year (who were selected on the basis of CSE 2019, results of which were declared recently), will add value to the work assigned to them in carrying out various specialised schemes and programmes introduced by the Modi government, according to the statement.
"He said, they are entering the services at one of the best times in the history of post-independent India, when under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India was on the ascent and would soon be a front line nation of the world," it said.
From that point of view, Mr Singh said, the young officers who have 30 to 35 years of service to render, will have the fortune of being contributors in the making of Modi's new India.
Mr Singh complimented the DoPT for living up to the expectations of the Modi government by not allowing the official work to be interrupted for a single day during the entire phase of pandemic.
The ceremony being held today, is also reiteration of the same, he said. The minister also recalled some of the path-breaking reforms brought in for the young probationers and IAS officers during the last six years.
These, he said, included introduction of three months stint of mentorship at the central government before they join their respective state or union territory cadres.
C Chandramouli, Secretary, DoPT congratulated all 20 toppers and wished for their bright future. He advised all the candidates that they should always remember that they have decided to opt for civil services as a career option for serving the society and development of the nation, as this service only provides innumerable opportunities for working in the diverse fields, the statement said. The candidates, therefore, should try their best for achieving excellence, Mr Chandramouli added.
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