IAS, IPS & IRS to Adopt Teens for Being ‘Mentor of Future’

The Narendra Modi-led government has formulated a plan for downtrodden teens to come out of deprivation through literacy. It has entrusted this responsibility to the shoulder of the IPS, IRS and IAS officers who have recently joined. Also known as civil service probationers, the new joinees will have to adopt adolescents to torch them all through their educational and professional journeys.

Today, thousands of candidates take a route to IAS or UPSC coaching center in Delhi, Mumbai and many other metropolitan cities, which requires a deep pocket. Amid poverty, the downtrodden groups of the society fail to afford the expenses of the best IAS coaching. This is why the central government has directed those probationers to adopt them as mentees for changing their future.

This groundbreaking initiative was formally launched during the common foundation course for civil service trainees of the 2019 batch. It aims at bringing the underprivileged or economically backward children in the limelight. These adoptions would be valid for the children studying in class 100 or above.

The first phase registered 425 children from 11 villages in Kevadiya, Gujarat as mentees. They have been put under the supervision of 20 civil servants as a mentor, which includes the IAS, IPS and IRS officers.  

A senior official from DoPT (Department of Personnel and Training) said, “We have linked the officer trainee and their mentee with their Aadhaar numbers, so that they can stay in touch throughout their professional lives.”

He further added, “The idea is in sync with the government’s desire to provide mentorship to those from underprivileged backgrounds, and also it instills a sense of social responsibility among civil servants.”

The officer informed that the children will relentlessly stay in touch with the civil servant even if they will be promoted to secretaries and top officers in other positions.

However, this programme has been initiated from Kevadiya in Gujarat. But very soon, it will be taken to other parts of our country. The upcoming years will witness this big change. Another official has also put forth that the government is planning to expand this programme to other government departments. It will ask all government job training academies to follow their footstep. Besides, a portal is in the pipeline for the probationers only at LBSNAA (Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration).

In short, the change is in the air. Very soon, the civil service coaching centres and even, the selected IAS officers would be a mentor of many other children who really need their guidance.