The privilege of being an administrative service officer in the sub-continent are many. While the usual seniority-driven protocol exists for promotions and postings, they all come together when it comes to perks such as overseas jaunts, and membership to elite clubs.
I have a pretty dim view of some of these bureaucrats. I know a number of them in the service, but the administrative and foreign service breed are a tad different from officers who belong to the revenue, or railway services; the latter are what I would term technical specialists, with measurable, outcome-driven jobs. Some in the IAS too have such jobs, but a huge number of them seem to, at least to the public eye, very little accountability, and a lot of authority. And when I see them lounging around in clubs, ostensibly talking governance over a beer, or at the ninth hole during regular working hours, I wonder.
I wonder whether our terrible dislike for the political class has been exacerbated by the under-performance of this bureaucratic class that sees privileges such as club memberships par for the course, and citizen services as an aside?
I feel like shaking them out of this intoxication, to this "very English upper-crust" lifestyle, and make them take their job seriously. And ask them to get the hell out if they cannot perform.
Having lived in Singapore for a lengthy period of time, I continue to be impressed with the work ethics of our IAS counterparts in that island nation. They are on the job earlier than the rest of their department staff, they are eminently accessible, their performance is measured and put up for public scrutiny, and laggards are pushed out of the system, or given obscure punishment posts. Accountability is high, and so is authority. And systems and processes are in place to deliver an outcome that directly impacts a citizen.
I sometimes feel our breed live in total isolation, disconnected from reality. How else can you explain a diplomatic spat between two warring nations, that is making headlines, over a measly club membership?
Clubbing woes of Indian, Pakistan diplomats
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