Latest news with #LocalBodies
Hans India
2 days ago
- Politics
- Hans India
Centre launches NSCSTI 2.0 to strengthen India's civil services training ecosystem
New Delhi: Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Dr. Jitendra Singh, launched the National Standards for Civil Service Training Institutes 2.0 (NSCSTI 2.0) on Friday, marking a significant step forward in strengthening the India's civil services training ecosystem to build a future-ready citizen-centric civil service. Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government has removed unreasonable barriers separating public and private sectors, enabling the best practices from all domains to be harnessed. This framework is an outcome of that vision. The Minister emphasised the need for extending customised training modules to scientific institutions, stressing the importance of administrative preparedness in addition to technical expertise. The upgraded NSCSTI 2.0 framework presents a more refined, inclusive, and future-ready approach to civil services training. It has been simplified and streamlined, with the number of evaluation metrics rationalized from 59 to 43, ensuring greater clarity and a sharper focus on outcome-based assessments. The framework is field-informed, drawing extensively from consultations with over 160 Civil Service Training Institutes (CSTIs), assessors, and domain experts, making it grounded in real-world training challenges and needs. Its inclusive design makes it adaptable for training institutes across all levels of government -- Central, State, and Urban Local Bodies (ULBs). Recognising the shifting learning landscape, the framework is also digitally aligned, embracing hybrid learning models and AI-driven training mechanisms. Most importantly, it is forward-looking, integrating progressive elements such as Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS), the Karmayogi Competency Model (KCM), and the Amrit Gyaan Kosh (AGK), thereby aligning with India's vision of building a future-ready, competent, and citizen-centric civil service. Recounting the global interest in India's civil services reform model, Dr. Jitendra Singh shared that countries like Bangladesh, South Africa, and Maldives have shown keen interest in studying Mission Karmayogi. 'This is a testament to India's leadership in governance reform,' he said. NSCSTI 2.0 also enhances policy visibility, reaffirming the government of India's commitment to institutional excellence and long-term capacity building. The framework serves as a strong motivational tool for CSTIs, encouraging them to embrace innovation, adopt best practices, and pursue continuous improvement. It also builds public awareness by positioning accreditation not merely as a compliance requirement but as a meaningful driver of quality and performance. With the reactivation of the accreditation portal, the framework ensures full operational readiness for a streamlined and transparent accreditation process. Additionally, it fosters cross-learning, enabling training institutes to benefit from the shared experiences and success stories of top-performing CSTIs across the country In just two years, over 195 CSTIs have already been accredited under NSCSTI. The upgraded version builds on real-time feedback and CBC's principle of participatory governance. Developed by the Capacity Building Commission (CBC), the revamped framework marks a major leap in India's mission to build a future-ready civil service. The Minister highlighted how the framework supports cooperative and competitive federalism, empowering institutes to evaluate and upgrade themselves. 'Just as the Aspirational Districts Programme enabled backward districts to outshine expectations, NSCSTI 2.0 encourages CSTIs to introspect, innovate and pursue excellence,' Dr. Singh noted.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Andhra Pradesh government caps deputation of officials to municipal administration department
1 2 3 4 Vijayawada: In a major administrative reform aimed at strengthening the functioning of Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) across Andhra Pradesh, the state govt has decided to cap the deputation of officials from other departments to municipal administration department. The govt has also decided to allow officials only from panchayat raj, rural development, revenue, state audit and state secretariat for deputation. The officials from other departments will not be taken into any wing of municipal administration. In fact, the total officials to be taken on deputation should not be more than 10 percent of the total strength of the ULBs. The decision came following a representation of municipal commissioners association which strongly objected the spree of deputations from other departments hampering their promotion opportunities. "The government wanted to promote efficient, professional, and accountable urban governance in response to the rapidly evolving challenges in the urban sector," said municipal administration and urban development principal secretary S Suresh Kumar. He explained that the ULBs serve as the primary interface between citizens and the government for delivering essential civic services such as sanitation, water supply, waste management, street lighting, and urban infrastructure. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Many Are Watching Tariffs - Few Are Watching What Nvidia Just Launched Seeking Alpha Read More Undo Over the years, due to administrative exigencies and manpower shortages, officers from other departments have been deputed to the MA&UD department to discharge the duties of municipal commissioners. However, concerns were raised about the lack of domain expertise among such deputed officers, which has impacted the quality of governance in several municipalities. Recently the Andhra Pradesh Municipal Commissioners' Association highlighted inefficiencies arising from such deputations and urged the government to establish stringent eligibility criteria. Following the advice of municipal administration minister Dr P Narayana, DMA submitted a detailed proposal underlining the complexity of urban governance and the need for competent leadership at the ULB level. After going through the report, the govt issued detailed guidelines for deputation of officials. The government introduced a standardized mechanism to regulate and streamline deputations, ensuring that only officers with the right qualifications, experience, and aptitude are considered. Officers from select departments having basic knowledge about urban governance issues and whose scale of pay matches the grade of the respective municipal body are eligible. The eligible departments and positions including MPDOs, DLDOs, deputy CEOs and CEOs of Zilla Parishads (for varying grades of municipalities) from PR department, tahsildars and deputy collectors from revenue department will be allowed for deputation. Similarly, assistant audit officers and district audit officers from state audit department and section officers and assistant secretaries from state secretariat will be taken on board. "This reform demonstrates our commitment to delivering better civic services through professionally managed urban local bodies. The guidelines bring greater transparency, efficiency, and accountability to the deputation process," said Suresh Kumar.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Over 1.4 new lakh Jan Dhan accounts opened in 2 weeks: Finance Ministry
In the first two weeks of the financial inclusion saturation campaign, over 1.4 lakh new PM Jan Dhan Yojana accounts and 5.4 lakh new enrolments under Jan Suraksha Schemes were recorded, the finance ministry said. The campaign aims to ensure full coverage across all Gram Panchayats and Urban Local Bodies. So far, 43,447 camps have been held to drive enrolments and boost financial literacy. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads The finance ministry on Tuesday said that in the first two weeks of its financial inclusion saturation campaign, around 1.4 lakh new PM Jan Dhan Yojana accounts have been opened and more than 5.4 lakh new enrolments made under three Jan Suraksha Schemes . "This campaign seeks to achieve comprehensive coverage across all Gram Panchayats (GPs) and Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), ensuring every eligible citizen is able to avail the intended benefits of these transformative schemes," the finance ministry said in its statement, adding that so far 43,447 camps have been conducted across various districts to facilitate beneficiary enrolment under key schemes and promote financial finance ministry stated that re-verification of KYC details for 96,383 inactive PMJDY accounts was carried out and nomination details were updated in 66,494 accounts.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
EC: 10 days to go, over 90% population covered under SIR
1 2 Patna: With only 10 days left for the submission of enumeration forms (EF), Election Commission (EC) on Tuesday claimed to have covered 90.84% of the total electorate under its ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in Bihar. However, only 86.32% of EFs have been collected so far. 'Accounting for the deceased, permanently shifted and people enrolled in more than one places, the EF collection phase of the SIR has covered 90.84% of nearly 7.9 crore strong electorate in Bihar," the EC said in a statement on Tuesday, adding that only 9.16% of electors are yet to submit their forms now. As per the information provided, out of the total 7,89,69,844 electors in Bihar, EFs of 6,81,67,861 or 86.32% have been collected. The last date for filing EFs is July 25. Sparing no effort to ensure that all eligible electors are included in the draft electoral roll, the third round of household visits by nearly one lakh BLOs will soon begin, the EC said. It added that the BLOs would again visit those households where the electors were temporarily absent in the previous visits. Special camps have been established in all 5,683 wards of all 261 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), and advertisements have been issued in newspapers to ensure that the remaining electors fill their EFs well in time and have their names included in the draft ER to be published on Aug 1. "Electors are also being encouraged by the BLOs to fill up their forms online, using their mobile phones through ECINet App or online form," it said. As per the EC, uploading of forms on ECINet has picked up with over 6.2 crore EFs uploaded till 6pm on Tuesday.
Hans India
11-07-2025
- Business
- Hans India
RUDA invites feedback on GIS-based master plan
Rajamahendravaram: A comprehensive GIS-based Master Plan has been prepared for the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) under the jurisdiction of the Rajamahendravaram Urban Development Authority (RUDA), informed RUDA Vice-Chairman and Joint Collector S Chinna Ramudu. The draft plan has been developed in line with appropriate land-use strategies by M/s Sky Group & Niketan Consultants. The Master Plan aims to guide systematic urban development and infrastructure planning in the RUDA region. To ensure transparency and public participation, suggestions and opinions are being invited from all stakeholders, including departments such as Revenue, Municipal Administration, Urban Planning, Transport, PWD, and Environment, along with elected representatives and the general public. For public convenience, the draft Master Plan has been made available at the RUDA office, East Godavari District Collectorate, Rajamahendravaram Municipal Office, and the offices of respective ULBs. It can also be accessed online at he added.
