Gurugram: All officers from the Haryana Civil Services and the All India Services will participate in ‘Ethics Conclaves’ (Naitikta Shivirs) at Karnal and Panchkula, with spiritual and motivational speakers addressing them in various sessions.
While 141 IAS officers, 83 IPS officers, 34 IFS officers, and 171 HCS officers were nominated to attend the Karnal conclave on 31 January, another 11 IAS officers, 22 IPS officers, 96 HCS officers and 23 Haryana Forests Service (HFS) officers will attend the one on Panchkula on 6 February.
A previous conclave was held 14 June last year, albeit in a lower scale in Gurugram in which Swami Sarvalokanandaji Maharaj from Ramakrishna Mission delivered his speech emphasising the importance of transparency, accountability and credibility in the administration.
Chief secretary Sanjeev Kaushal told ThePrint Monday that the ‘Ethical Conclaves’ are being organised as a special session under the Mission Karamyogi Haryana, a flagship programme of the Haryana government that aims to train all the 3 lakh-plus government employees for greater citizen centricity and ethical outlook.
In these conclaves, he said, the importance of workplace ethics, integrity and culture of doing the right things in the face of temptation and adversity would be reiterated and showcased by the guest speakers.
“The government held one such conclave in Gurugram on 14 June last year where Swami Sarvalokanandaji Maharaj from Ramakrishna Mission, Delhi, and Gita Manishi Swami Gyananand Ji Maharaj spoke about ethics, morality and work culture,” the chief secretary said.
“At the event scheduled for 31 January, Gyananandji Maharaj will deliver a lecture on these aspects while Sudhanshuji Maharaj of Vishwa Jagriti Mission will address the participants on 6 February. Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar will deliver a keynote address at both the events.”
Under the Mission Karamyogi Haryana, the Khattar government has authorised the Haryana Institute of Public Administration (HIPA) to accomplish the task of training all 3 lakh employees of the state government.
The Haryana government has nominated nodal officers and master trainers for all the (22) districts of the state, he said. ”In the Ethics Conclaves on 31 January and 6 February, the focus will remain on the teachings of ethics, integrity and morality.”
A source in the HIPA told The Print that the mission to train all 3.17 lakh government (both permanent and contractual) employees began in December and by now, the training of nearly 1.5 lakh people has been completed.
Contacted over his phone by The Print, an IAS officer said that most of the invitees will be attending such a conclave for the first time in their career where religious people give discourse on work ethics. “We are waiting for the event. We can share our experiences only once we attend the session,” the bureaucrat said.
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What happened in last year’s conclave
In the Gurugram conclave, Swami Sarvalokananda Maharaj from Ramakrishna Mission had spoke to a gathering that included CM Khattar, chief secretary Kaushal and senior officers from the city.
Swami Sarvalokananda said that ‘sarkari karamcharis’ (govt employees) should better be addressed as ‘sarkari sewaks’ (govt servants). The progress and development of a nation depend on the efficiency of the government officials because it all depends on the decisions taken and implemented by them, he further said.
Quoting Ramakrishna Mission founder Swami Vivekananda, he said that the Swami once said that we have to become ideal and enlightened citizens because the development of a nation doesn’t happen just with wealth alone but through its human resources.
The governments so far have not worked with the objective of service to people, he said.
Emphasising the importance of transparency, accountability, and credibility among government officials, he said that there has been a tremendous erosion of human values and hence the country needs transparency in administration for growth.
Similarly, he said that the officials must be accountable for their deeds and must have credibility among people.
A YouTube video of the speech is available on the website of the Ramakrishna Mission.
In his speech, Khattar had said that all the officers should dedicate themselves to the public interest and act as public servants.
The Haryana chief minister said that the purpose of the conclave is that after joining the government service, the public servant should work with the spirit of responsibility of serving society.
During the last eight-and-a-half-years of his tenure, Khattar said, he tried to take the state forward with the aim of social service alone and that he wanted to take the state forward with this objective in mind.
(Edited by Tony Rai)