The concept of bringing in talents and subject matter experts especially private professionals into the bureaucracy at the Centre is a move in the right direction. The Central government has recently offered 10 such posts for lateral entry into its system who will be appointed on contract. Although the opposition parties are against the move and criticised the ruling NDA, the government has stated that it is meant to bring in fresh ideas in the government. The move from the centre comes at a time when in Nagaland, the present PDA government had also appointed a few selected individuals on similar ranks as the existing civil servants on contract and co-terminus with the government. It also comes at a time when the All Nagaland College Students Union has given an ultimatum to the state government to recall all the government teachers who at attached to MLAs.
The criticisms are because of a particular school of thought in India that only those who have cleared competitive exams whether of the UPSC or the state public service commission’s can one be able to enter the much revered Babudom. In India the 17-20 years of formal education and the efforts put in to clear the competitive exams, many a times, have more weightage than actual performance in their jobs after appointment. The private sector is replete with examples to debunk such concepts. On the other hand the masses including the many politicians are always ready to blame the Babus for their inadequacy and incompetency. Along with the usual criticism against redtapism the bureaucracy is always blamed for slow implementation of projects due to the time take by them to learn new things. So extraordinary appointments of professionals will only boost the bureaucracy.
If we have to take the example of the United States, their school of thought might be a little too extreme for the Indian psyche at present. In countries like the US and a few others there is strict separation of the legislature and the executive. So legislators are not allowed to take up any executive positions, and if appointed as minister they need to resign from the legislature. In the US, except for the president who is indirectly elected every four years the cabinet of the federal government is handpicked and nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate. Along with proper credentials relevant to the office they are appointed for, the president picks those who are loyal to the party and the president. So what might be considered as a group of outsiders in many countries are actually the group of insiders in the president’s or prime minister’s circle who has the credentials and are legitimately made to hold executive offices.
In Nagaland too the recent concept, rules and notifications of office of profit is affecting the way legislators are appointed for various government departments and agencies. However the big question still remains because the ministers of the departments are still members of the legislature. MLAs without credentials are at times made ministers of departments that they have no clue about as a result of various political and tribal permutations and combinations. Along with it comes a bureaucracy that the public itself do not trust. It is because the agencies that conduct such exams for entry in to government service were found to be wanting and even arrests were made for unfair means. Although no retrospective cases were filed the doubt will always remain on the appointment of the many non-performing civil servants in the state. So in such a scenario highest executive office in the state, the chief minister’s office or secretariat, do requires persons with relevant experience and expertise who are also part of the inner circle of the incumbent. As long as it is within the ambit of the law official designations are also required so that there is no breach of protocol. The exception is the blatant attachment of many public servants with MLAs to avoid going to their usual place of postings. So it is better to have a system which allows this type of special appointments to be made but not misused.
