Govt plans training to make staffers people-friendly

In a bid to make lower and middle-rank officials more people friendly, the Delhi government has organised personality development and managerial competence training programmes, aimed at teaching the staffers basic etiquette and civic sense.

The Directorate of Training has scheduled the programme in December as part of administrative reforms. The officials will undergo two-day training programme on etiquette and civic sense, and two-day course on team building, group dynamics, and stress management in the first 10 days of the month. The course on stress management will be aimed at identifying situations, sources and impact of stress, and educating participants in stress management.

"These courses have been designed to enhance the skills and knowledge of the officials and to make them familiar with new concepts, initiatives and benchmarks in the field. It will benefit them in their day-to-day functioning," a circular issued by the Delhi government stated.

The circular further stated that the government servants needed to learn etiquette and become more people-friendly. "To be a successful team and not simply a group, we need to find ways to communicate, set real goals, recognise our own and each others' strengths, work together and constantly look at how we are doing. Team building can be used as a useful intervention strategy to develop greater organisational effectiveness. Courses on team building and group dynamics will cover various aspects of team building and group dynamics."

The senior government officials receive complaints regarding the unruly behaviour of the lower-ranked officials on a regular basis.

Earlier, the state government had organised a training programme to equip officials with social media knowledge. Thereafter, the government announced that short-term courses will be introduced for its officials to increase their efficiency and responsiveness.