Abstract:
The dawn of independence for India in 1947 led to a flurry of activities by the
government to expedite the process of modernisation and nation-building and the
responsibility was promptly shouldered by the civil services of the day considered
to be the steel frame known for its vigour, vitality, impartiality and effectiveness.
Although the civil services were inexperienced in the concept of a welfare state,
they have come out with flying colours both in stabilising the fluid and turbulent
society, economy and polity and also propelling the growth and development from
vanguard; all of which necessitated constant and continuous learning on the part of
civil services through training and development activities.
The research provides an overview of the role of training and development
activities with specific reference to training institutions, training activities and
training curriculum, of the higher civil services in India in enhancing their capacity
in the formulation and execution of public policies and also critically focus the
areas which have incapacitated the system as a whole in delivering public services
to the citizens of the country. The article intends to bring out the issues pertaining
to the needs of the civil servants in the era of a liberal and global world where the
citizen expects better and qualitative services and the role that can be played by the
training and development activities towards the fulfilment of the goals. The article
discusses the content, pedagogy, effectiveness, review and the present state of
training in civil services. The article endeavours to present the civil service training
in India in international perspective and offers suggestions to make it relevant to the
present day needs of a developmental state.
