Dr. Jitendra Singh Addresses IAS Mid-Career Training Valedictory
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science & Technology, Earth Sciences, and Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office, Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh, addressed the valedictory session of the 21st Round of the Phase-IV Mid-Career Training Programme (MCTP) for Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers at the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA), Mussoorie on July 10, 2026.
The four-week programme, conducted from 15 June to 10 July, brought together 51 IAS officers from across the country with over 14 years of administrative experience for advanced capacity building under Mission Karmayogi. The participants represented diverse cadres and sectors of governance. Director of LBSNAA, Sriram Taranikanti, senior faculty members and distinguished resource persons associated with the programme were also present.
Dr. Singh emphasized that India's diversity is reflected not only in its society but also in its governance systems, making continuous learning, exchange of best practices and adaptive leadership essential for building the next generation of public administration. He stated that every State presents distinct administrative realities, aspirations and developmental priorities, and urged officers to actively share experiences and successful governance practices across cadres so that India's regional diversity becomes a source of administrative strength.
The Minister highlighted that Mission Karmayogi has fundamentally transformed the philosophy of capacity building in the civil services by shifting the focus from rule-based administration to role-based governance. He noted that the iGOTKarmayogi platform has institutionalized continuous learning across government, enabling officers to regularly upgrade their knowledge, skills and competencies in response to emerging governance challenges.
Dr. Singh cited several governance innovations that have attracted global recognition, including Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) which has prevented leakages and generated savings exceeding ₹3.4 lakh crore, the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), Digital Public Infrastructure, the JAM Trinity and CPGRAMS. He stated that India has emerged as a global leader in several frontier technologies rather than remaining merely a technology adopter, referencing the National Quantum Mission, the country's expanding startup ecosystem, the opening of the space sector to private participation, and recent reforms in the nuclear sector.
The Minister highlighted the changing relationship between government and enterprise, noting that the conventional divide between public and private sectors has given way to a collaborative development model. He emphasized that governance reforms acquire real meaning only when technological advancement is complemented by human sensitivity, citing personnel reforms such as greater flexibility in family pension nomination, extension of maternity-related benefits in cases of stillbirth, and removal of provisions that denied family pension to dependents of government employees who died before completing prescribed qualifying service.
Dr. Singh called for continuous modernization of civil services training through greater institutional collaboration, wider faculty diversity and evolving curricula. He encouraged greater participation of younger serving officers as faculty members and highlighted the growing importance of effective communication in public administration. The Minister advocated for a more interactive training ecosystem supported by structured and anonymous participant feedback, and called for a less hierarchical administrative culture where learning is not restricted by seniority.