For governance to improve, fundamental changes have to be made in the way governments are run, Arvind Kejriwal said.
Delhi Chief Minister Mr Arvind Kejriwal has invited the bureaucracy to forge a partnership with his government to collectively deliver good governance. The Delhi government, he said, was planning to implement a system of awards and punishments for the bureaucracy.
Addressing a seminar at the Delhi Secretariat today, on eve of the Civil Services Day, the chief minister said though it has become a fashion to blame bureaucracy for all ills, the root cause of problems is bad politics. For governance to improve, fundamental changes have to be made in the way governments are run - one of the main things could be the introduction of competition, he said.
As an example, he said the government intends to open up the positions of VAT and Excise commissioners by advertising them. But all applicants will be required to present a blueprint for improvement in tax collections through persuasive and positive measures.
Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia urged the bureaucracy to reinvent itself to restore its lost talent. He said he expected officers to give preference to public good over technicalities, since files and papers do not help minimize the pain of the people.
The bureaucracy, he said, has the capacity to function and deliver, but lacked courage. The ministers and bureaucrats will have to trust each other for providing honest delivery in the interests of the common man, he said. The Delhi government, he said, was willing to change laws which come in the way of delivery.
The seminar was addressed by India's seniormost lawyer and former union law minister Mr Ram Jethmalani, former union cabinet secretary TSR Subramanian, former union revenue secretary Mr NK Singh and noted constitutional expert and senior lawyer Mr Rajeev Dhawan.
It was presided over by the Delhi chief secretary Mr KK Sharma and attended among others by former Chief Secretaries Mr Rakesh Mehta, Mr PK Tripathi and Mr DM Spolia.