Cabinet Secretary T V Somanathan Unveils 12 Types of Bureaucrats at Review Meeting

Cabinet Secretary T V Somanathan presented a list categorizing 12 types of bureaucrats during a senior-level performance review meeting held on Tuesday, according to reports by The Times of India.

Bureaucrats Categorized with Humour and Cartoons

The presentation featured various profiles of officers, illustrated in many cases with cartoons by R K Laxman. Reported categories included:

• Officers who reportedly ask women colleagues to stand too close while showing documents.
• Individuals who throw files or speak rudely.
• Staff who call colleagues on Saturdays but arrive late themselves.
• Officers scheduling meetings after 7 pm or sitting on files.
• Personnel who forward decisions to ministers that they could have taken themselves.

Performance Rankings and Reforms Discussed

Apart from the behavioral categorization, the meeting included a quantitative review where department secretaries were ranked on performance parameters. Officials stated the broader message focused on improving workplace efficiency and conducting better meetings.

Somanathan also informed officers about the Centre's plan to roll out Deregulation 3.0 in January, aimed at reducing red tape, simplifying compliance, and improving the ease of doing business.

Inter-Ministerial Consultations and Food Scheme Directive

During the meeting, Somanathan urged faster inter-ministerial consultations, specifically noting that the finance and commerce ministries should send their views promptly to prevent delays. He also remarked that performance scores often cluster near the top on a scale of 1 to 10, making it challenging to separate top performers.

Additionally, the department of food and public distribution raised concerns regarding about 1 lakh railway employees holding ration cards for free foodgrain under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana. Terming it a disciplinary matter, Somanathan directed Railway Board Chairman Satish Kumar to ensure these cards are surrendered.