Meera Borwankar

The Oxford dictionary defines ethics as the science of morals in human conduct. It is further clarified to be the moral philosophy, moral principles or rules of conduct. At the same time a public servant is described as a state official. While I agree with the definition of ethics I feel the concise Oxford dictionary has not done full justice in defining a public servant.

I see a very strong link between ethics and public servant as the latter for me is not a state official but a person who serves the public or citizens. I often make a point that in India we have a culture of serving the VIPs and ignoring the common citizen. Irony of the situation is that these important persons are competent to take care of themselves while it is the common man who requires a helping hand from public servants. The focus of the activities of officers like me should be ordinary citizens and not the select few. Similarly public administration should be citizen centric. Given this perspective, ethics plays the crucial role of being the spirit behind administration or governance.

Public administration is basically for providing smooth structures/ processes to enable citizens and institutes to perform and grow. For me ethics is not only confined to the integrity and honesty within the given system but also speed and efficiency. Public administration in India can be said to be ethical only if government processes and structures are geared to help citizens live their lives smoothly and there is value addition to the quality of life through public servants like me.

From the broad perspective mentioned above if we come down to micro level I would say that a public servant is ethical in administration if he/she is available, accessible and provides facilities to citizens in least possible time e.g. if a crime is reported, it should be registered immediately and investigated professionally. Therefore ethics in administration for me is not a mere concept but a practical activity undertaken by administration every day.

Currently working in Yashwantrao Chavan Academy of Administration my colleagues and I frequently discuss this topic and also impart training to officials from Government of Maharashtra. It hurts us to see the cynicism of citizens about government working but let me assure you that there are many sensitive, motivated public servants who are doing their best wherever they may be posted. YASHADA encourages the culture of ethical administration and strongly networks with officials in this regard. It would also help the administration if citizens came forward and highlighted value-based services received by them from a public servant. By appreciating a constable guiding traffic during a dry, parched sunny day, a citizen not only motivates that particular constable but also reaches out to an administration that needs collaboration with citizens.

Meera Borwankar
Inspector General of Police, currently Dy. Director General (Administration and Training), YASHADA, Pune