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1. Performance and Accountability: A Case of Bhutanese Civil Service

Author:
Singay
Publication Date:
03-2022
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Bhutan Studies
Institution:
Centre for Bhutan & GNH Studies (CBS)
Abstract:
There has been substantial research undertaken on the performance management system (PMS) and accountability. Despite a recent increase in the literature on PMS and accountability, far less research has been carried out on the impact of the PMS in strengthening accountability in Bhutanese civil service. As a result, critical gaps exist between PMS and actual practice in strengthening the accountability of Bhutanese civil servants in the field. To fill this gap, this study set out to examine the impact of the PMS in strengthening accountability in the Bhutanese civil service. This study uses interviews and content analysis of the annual reports to answer the research questions. Results showed that agencies introduced various systems to strengthen accountability, such as accountability initiatives, performance-based accountability, and effective disciplinary regime. However, interview data indicated that the current PMS failed to strengthen accountability in the Bhutanese civil service. A possible explanation for these results may be the lack of fair and reasonable measurement tools, the priority level of accountability, and supervisor accountability. Policy recommendations for strengthening accountability and suggestions for future research are provided.
Topic:
Accountability, Performance Evaluation, and Civil Services
Political Geography:
South Asia and Bhutan

2. Debates on Administrative Reform in India: Examinations and Recruitment

Author:
Archana Sivasubramanian
Publication Date:
03-2022
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Centre for Policy Research, India
Abstract:
Over the last 50 years, norms for recruitment in the Indian Civil Services have undergone several changes to reflect the needs of the administration, the aspirations of a democratic society and the changes in the country’s political economy. There were two developments that led to these changes. The first development is domestic in nature—reform committees were set up to examine the different features of the examination and the recruitment system for entry into the All India Civil Services. A reform committee setup under A.D. Gorwala in 1951, published independent India’s first report on public administration. Subsequent reform committees addressed several other aspects of the Civil Services examination system including educational qualifications, age for entry into the services, number of attempts and service allocation rules. The second, and a connected development is international in its scope and nature. Other Westminster democracies across the world were implementing new theories of public management—such as market-oriented reform of the Civil Services—and these developments advanced India’s thinking on reforms for its own Civil Services. Every reform committee has highlighted the importance of the recruitment exercise as a channel to draw people with merit into the services. Reforms were proposed to “weed out the dead wood” and professionalise the Civil Services in order to realise an efficient, incorrupt and a result-oriented bureaucracy (Alagh Committee, 2001, p. 35). This, the committees suggested, must be routed through the recruitment funnel by finding the ‘right type of persons’—candidates who can combine intellectual competence with a strong ethical value system and a positive public service orientation. An important objective of the recruitment system has been to also ensure that the Civil Services is more equal and representative and guarantees representation to historically underrepresented groups through recruitment quotas. However, some studies have argued that the recruitment pattern reveals a distinct upper caste, urban bias, stressing the need for corrective measures to democratise the Civil Services (Barik, 2004). Keeping this backdrop in mind, many debates pertinent to the recruitment and examination architecture have been held. On the surface, these debates appear to be procedural as they concern themselves with questions about age limits and number of attempts that applicants are eligible for. But a closer examination of the debates reveals that they are also fundamentally about questions of meritocracy and representation in the Civil Services. The Civil Services Examination (CSE ) is expected to allow for equal opportunity and representation of all castes and classes in the Services. In addition, meritocracy plays an important role in the design of this system, but there are discussions on the validity of this idea of merit itself. Examining some of these debates will serve as entry points for us to understand the examination and recruitment apparatus, a small but critical cog in the machinery of India’s bureaucracy. The main objective of this working paper on examinations and recruitment in the Civil Services is to trace the origins of these debates in order to contextualise the present through an understanding of the past. The focus of this working paper is only on the All India Civil Services, although equally interesting and meaningful, reforms in the State Civil Services institutions—like the Punjab government’s decision to mandate 33 percent reservation for women in direct recruitment for the Punjab Civil Services—have not been touched upon. There is a large volume of material to explore on the State Civil Services and we hope that this working paper lays the foundation for further studies in this regard. This working paper analyses various committee reports that were set up to reform the Civil Services. Most of the analyses are drawn from the Kothari Commission Report (1977), the Satish Chandra Committee Report (1989), the Alagh Committee Report (2001), the P. C. Hota Committee Report (2004) and the Second Administrative Reforms Commission Report (Second ARC) (2009). Figure 1 outlines a timeline of committees that have made important observations on the debates on examinations and selection. The committee reports reveal a discernible pattern—three key debates that have been found to recur over and over again: eligibility status, examination process and service allocation. These debates may not cover the entire gamut of arguments but have been addressed in this paper because of the importance given to them in the committee reports and their relevance to contemporary India. Overall, this working paper does three things: first, it synthesises the main ideas from the reform committee reports; second, through a discussion section, it highlights the normative principles that underpin the selection processes and third, it asks a few open-ended questions that warrant careful analysis, stakeholder conversations, and reflection.
Topic:
Reform, Recruitment, and Civil Services
Political Geography:
South Asia and India

3. Path Dependency and Implementation of Administrative Reforms: Case of Civil Services of Pakistan

Author:
Labiba Sheikh and Aisha Rizwan
Publication Date:
07-2021
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Political Studies
Institution:
Department of Political Science, University of the Punjab
Abstract:
The purpose of this paper is to analyze the structure and characteristics of the civil services in Pakistan and determine the extent of application of path dependency principles to the civil services in Pakistan. The paper also aims to discuss the factors that have led to the path dependency in civil services of Pakistan. More specifically, this study will try to identify the set of initial conditions that triggered the events that led to path dependency in civil services of Pakistan and debate on the nature of the mechanisms that have kept the civil services of Pakistan on the same track, making it path dependent. Also in the context of path dependency, what have been the critical junctures in the path dependent model of civil services of Pakistan? This paper also explores the various attempts of reforming civil service since the creation of Pakistan and argues that path dependency has acted as a barrier to the civil service reforms in Pakistan. The study also proposes a theoretical model for conducting empirical research on the implementation of civil service reforms in Pakistan.
Topic:
Reform, Civil Services, and Path Dependency
Political Geography:
Pakistan and South Asia