Author(s): Rehan Kunal Jagota
Mission Karmayogi is a bold initiative of Government of India to democratize the training process and puts everyone on the same playing field. This mission emphasizes the ‘servant’ part in the acclaimed civil services. It attempts to address the issues in the existing system, such as complexity and red-tapism, through a capacity-building initiative working at an individual, institutional, and procedural level. The training of employees is a crucial part of their work tenure, but it is only limited to certain topmost services. The 89% of bureaucrats who are in direct touch with the public receive fragmented and sub-par training. Through a bottom-up approach and digitized way of working and training, it attempts to end the ‘work-silo’ culture of the bureaucracy. Mission Karmayogi aims to cover 46 lakhs employees of the central government within its purview. The government plans to spend INR 510.86 crore over five years, from FY 2021-22 to FY 2024-25. External accountability and transparency must be crucial for more excellent responsiveness. Improved information systems can ensure this, responsibility for inputs, better audit, publishing all the budget summarised and track records related to this mission by each department suo motto, and a more robust performance evaluation system. Mission Karmayogi is India’s first robust mission to reform civil services and empower them to deliver services effectively and efficiently. It must deal with many issues and tensions. This mission can sail through all these shortcomings if the program is powered with an extended vision and fuelled by constant motivation.