An article from our reader, Aishna Mishra
The global outbreak of Coronavirus has pretty much changed all our lives forever but the question we have to ask ourselves is, has it changed our perception of services that were once tagged ‘corrupt’ in the past?
The implementation of the lockdown has faced much criticism by the experts. But what about the measures that have helped us tackle the coronavirus in such a populous country with such limited resources? Ever since Bhilwara discovered its first case of Coronavirus, experts have believed that it could have been India’s first hotspots. But within few weeks, the cases were controlled effectively. How did it happen?
Be it Lav Aggrawal, joint secretary of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, or be it Tina Dabi at the grass-root level, these are the frontline heroes of the current pandemic who have given their day and night for effective public administration. It is not an easy task to make decisions for a diverse country. So how is India tackling the current pandemic?
You can't solve the problem by being at the top of the organization. You need to discover the issues prevalent at the grass-root level. Even though the policies are made by the Prime Ministers and his cabinet, have you ever wondered how policies are being implemented at the grassroots level? Have you ever wondered how so many people were evacuated during Cyclone Amphan? How did the government plan to bring so many migrants back home?
India is not just divided into 29 states but also into 739 districts. These districts are the most crucial unit of the administration. Each district is headed by the Collector ( Indian Administrative Service) along with executives such as CEO, SDM, etc.
During Covid19, public administration is governed by laws, such as —the Disaster Management Act 2005, Epidemic And Diseases Act 1897, Essential Commodities Act 1955, and many more. Ever since the lockdown has been introduced by the government, each district is categorized into zones. Each of these zones are headed by “Incident Commanders” who are the real frontline heroes. They consist of newly appointed IAS officers who merely have an experience of 1–2 years and yet were given the responsibility of not just implementing a complete lockdown but also contact tracing, ensuring the availability of PPE Kits, social distancing, random testing, isolation wards, creation of containment zone on certain criteria, etc. The list is limitless and their work is not just restricted to hospitals. Coronavirus outbreak is a new form of disaster that brings new challenges every day with inadequate reaction time — attacks on medical staff and police, gas leakages, Assam Floods, Cyclones, and many other problems that the public isn’t even aware of. All these hurdles are tackled by just a team of few executives.
The All Indian Services consists of three branches — the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), the Indian Forest Service (IFS) and the Indian Police Service. These services have stood at the frontline even before the pandemic- during natural disasters, terrorist attacks, and yet were seen as a part of the corrupt bureaucratic system that has been holding back India’s growth.
While looking back at the pages of history and a lot of other initiatives taken by these officers, which aren’t frequently shared online, Is it right to blame the the entire All India Services for the corruption caused by a few? Will the current pandemic change the image of public administration or will they forever be tagged as a part of a corrupt system?
The answer to this, simply lies in the way we perceive, and are going to percieve things that are occuring around us.
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