A review committee formed by the department of personnel and
training of the government has initiated wide-ranging
consultations on the improvement of training given to the IAS
cadets during their period of induction to the service. This
article provides a few more suggestions.
Vithal Rajan
The department of personnel and training (DoPT) of the government of India has now formed a special committee to review the training given to IAS cadets during their period of induction to the service, and the committee has initiated wide-ranging consultations with leaders from all walks of life on how improvements might be carried out. This brief note hopes to add to the democratic discussion of this important issue through the national media.
Why should the IAS and IPS not be disbanded? These two so-called services form the powerful bureaucratic mafia that continues to follow the colonial traditions set during the East India Company days of distrusting the people, of choking delivery of services to which people are entitled, and continuing the practice of nondemocratic hierarchical administration, as if India is still a colony. New idealistic cadets should first debate the historical roots and values of the structure they are entering, and how they could contribute during their years of service to make it more
humane and democratic.
Haroun-al-Rashid method: Almost all of the young cadets jump straight into the “heaven-born” service from their sheltered homes and college life. The first induction period should involve the cadets being sent out disguised as an ordinary poor person seeking some service or help from a government agency, to which a citizen should be normally entitled. These could include seeking a no-encumbrance certificate from a registrar; trying to file an FIR with the police for sexual harassment; trying to get a tehsildar’s certificate to enrol an orphan in a social welfare hostel; seeking medical aid from a PHC or district hospital or on birth control as an unmarried woman; or attempt to apply for a pension or even access to a newly announced government programme as a self-help group. The experiences should then be shared by all the cadets with each other.
Chinese practice of pouring out bitterness: The Chinese during their revolution sensitised their ruling cadres by asking the poor to pour out stories of bitterness. Perhaps with the help of clerks, cooks, rickshaw-pullers, cadets can visit ordinary people who can tell them how justice was denied to them, or help and aid refused because of bureaucratic red-tape or indifference. It would be good to learn at the very start that their service offers no service to anyone.
A psychoanalyst’s course on how to listen: Very early IAS cadets assume the mantle of power in the districts to which they are posted, and part of their exercise of power is to be as infallible as a pope. They ruthlessly cut short statements, opinions or advice rendered, even by their “provincial” subordinates, to exercise their right to make up their minds without knowledge. A psychoanalyst could explain to the young what harm this overlordship does to their own psyches.
Motherly advice on how not to infantilise technical experts: Some women know how to help sons grow into strong men, though most probably not Israelis or Italians, and certainly not Indians. Perhaps tribal women can help, since the harshness of government combined with an externally despoiled environment must leave women with no choice but to harden their sons at a very early age. Their help should be sought so that IAS officers do not infantilise technical heads of departments, doctors, foresters, engineers to maintain their generalist’s power. This corroding practice infantilises the whole country, and justifies the IAS self-fulfilling prophecy that the system cannot run without them.
Military caution about not treading on unknown territory: A military commander perforce has to have as detailed knowledge as possible of the terrain he may lead his forces into. The IAS officers must imbibe such caution so that they do not leave one moment a post doling out some supposed benefit to “beneficiaries”, to run a public sector unit as a businessman the next. Such businesses will always fail and business is best left to business houses, though this does entail that the IAS cannot puff itself out to be as tin gods.
Sharing communist experience of paternalism: Indian communists have the longest tradition of paternalism, and know by bitter experience that this neither wins votes nor loyalty. So those cadets who start out hoping to be generous protectors of the poor may learn early in life that they may do better good just by being professional in carrying out their duties.
Gaining the confidence of criminals: The continued practice of administrative features listed above massively promotes corruption, since no legitimate door is open to people to air grievances or seek assistance or even get their due as the law allows. A heart to heart session with kindly convicted criminals, particularly the few
policemen who get caught, will go a long way to enlighten young cadets how the system really works.
Ashram retreat: Every cadet during the final period of training must spend a month in any ashram or religious retreat of choice to meditate on the worthlessness of power, and that they are but “dressed in a little brief authority”, and continue to visit the ashram every year for the first 10 years in service, at least for a week.
Compulsory daredevil adventure course: No cadet should be inducted into service who has not finally undertaken an adventure course, where he or she has been forced to risk his/her life. If they do not have the guts to risk death, they will not have the guts to change the system ever so little while in power.
