In an obvious reference to the post-Godhra killings and the failure of the state administration in Gujarat, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said it had caused a ‘‘scar’’ on the body politic and asked young civil servants to ensure that such things never happen again. Addressing IAS probationers in New Delhi today, the PM said: ‘‘What happened in Gujarat has caused a scar on the body politic. Such things should never happen in future.’’ In a diverse country like India, the PM said, it was very important to maintain communal harmony. It was the responsibility of civil servants to ensure that citizens did not fear ‘‘arbitrary governments’’, he said. It was also up to them to maintain cohesiveness that enhances the dignity of citizens. In terms of governance, he said, it was the conduct of the civil servants that determined how the public viewed the government and administration. ‘‘Possibility of misuse and corruption is always there,’’ Singh said, adding that they had to set examples in terms of conduct. The governments, at the Centre, states and local level, accounted for 33 per cent of the national expenditure, ‘‘which is a large chunk,’’ he said. ‘‘It is very important that this expenditure is wisely incurred. While decisions are taken, full record should be kept to ensure efficiency and ensure that spending processes do not give rise to corruption, for this brings disrepute to the civil services and the government.’’ In times of coalition governments, the PM said that it was also the responsibility of bureaucrats to bring about some coherence in processes of governance. Power sharing brought some ‘‘uncertainty and insecurity’’ in the system. Singh said that re-orientation of the civil services was required so as to address ‘‘the primary task of developing our economic and social potentials to enable the country get rid of poverty, ignorance and disease in the shortest possible time period.’’ Firm maintenance of law and order was also needed for development. ‘‘We must protect and empower those who are weak. We must provide greatest power of expression to dynamic forces and sustain a social and economic process which gives a ray of hope to those who are at the lowest rank of the ladder that they have a chance to catch up. That has to be the basic way of approach,’’ PM said, setting the guidelines for the young probationers.
