New Delhi, April 21 (HS): Today marks the celebration of the 17th National Civil Services Day across the country. On this occasion, an awards ceremony has been organized at the Vigyan Bhawan in the national capital, Delhi, around 11 a.m. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the country’s civil servants at Vigyan Bhawan. He will also present the ‘Prime Minister’s Award’ for excellence in public administration for the effective implementation of prioritized programs and innovations identified at the district level and by central and state governments. This information was shared by the Government of India’s Press and Information Bureau (PIB) in a press release on the eve of Prime Minister Modi’s program. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has also shared this event on X (formerly Twitter).
According to PIB, Prime Minister Modi will release e-books focused on overall development and innovations. These books contain success stories of the implementation of prioritized programs and innovations. Before the distribution of awards, a short film will be shown. This will be the seventh time that Prime Minister Modi will address the National Civil Services Day ceremony.
Civil Services Day provides an opportunity for civil servants across the country to rededicate themselves to the welfare of citizens and reinforce their commitment to public service and excellence in their work. This date was chosen to commemorate the day in 1947 when Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel addressed probationary administrative service officers at the Metcalfe House in Delhi. The Civil Services Day conference at Vigyan Bhawan has been organized by the central government.
The ‘Prime Minister’s Award’ scheme for excellence in public administration was launched to recognize the extraordinary and innovative work done by districts and organizations of the central and state governments for the welfare of common citizens. The following priority programs have been identified for the awards to be given on Civil Services Day 2025 for the year 2024: (A) Category 1 – Overall development of districts (B) Category 2 – Aspirational Block Program (C) Category 3 – Innovation. After extensive evaluation, 14 winners have been shortlisted from 1588 nominations. The Prime Minister’s Award includes: (i) a trophy, (ii) a scroll, and (iii) an incentive amount of 2 million rupees awarded to the honored district/organization. This amount can be used to address resource gaps in the implementation of projects/programs or in any area of public welfare.
After the award ceremony, there will be a full session on Public Service Reform – Challenges and Opportunities, chaired by Cabinet Secretary Dr. T.V. Somanathan. On this occasion, four separate sessions will be held on strengthening urban transport, promoting a healthy India through the Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY scheme and Ayushman Arogya Mandir, enhancing nutrition for women and children through Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Nutrition 2.0, and the Aspirational Block Program.
The Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs and the Minister of Power, Manohar Lal, will chair the session on strengthening urban transport. The Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare and the Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers, Jagat Prakash Nadda, will preside over the session promoting a healthy India through the Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY scheme and Ayushman Arogya Mandir. The Union Minister of Women and Child Development, Annapurna Devi, will chair the session on enhancing nutrition for women and children through Mission Saksham Anganwadi and Nutrition 2.0. The CEO of NITI Aayog, B.V.R. Subrahmanyam, will chair the session on the Aspirational Block Program.
The day-long event will see participation from senior officials of the Government of India, including secretaries, additional secretaries, joint secretaries, deputy secretaries, and assistant secretaries, as well as senior officials from state governments, including Chief Secretaries, Additional Chief Secretaries, Principal Secretaries, heads of central training institutes, Resident Commissioners, central service officers, and district collectors.
Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
