Describing civil services as the steel frame of governance, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday commended the dedication and hard work of the personnel of the Armed Forces Headquarters (AFHQ) Civilian Services in taking forward the ongoing works, including efforts to attain Aatmanirbharta, and contributing to the welfare of soldiers.

“You are an important link between the Armed Forces and the rest of the civilian government. There is a need to further strengthen your capabilities for enhanced efficiency,” the defence minister said while addressing the 83rd AFHQ Civilian Services Day here.

He called upon the personnel of the AFHQ Civilian Services to continue enhancing their skills in today’s fast-changing times for efficient policy making and implementation and execution of reforms being undertaken in the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

Singh added that the three Services form a large part of the functioning in MoD and the AFHQ cadre ensures that the possibility of ‘group-think’, which results in poor decision-making, is negated in policy formulation.

“Unprecedented reforms have been undertaken in MoD in the last five years, and there has been tremendous progress in several areas. Our achievements have been recognised globally. This has happened due to team work. The Armed Forces and Civil Services should work together from Command Headquarters and Service Headquarters to the Ministry for better output. By including AFHQ Civil Services officers in key roles in MoD, the quality of decision making will improve,” he added.

Singh urged the Department of Defence to explore the possibilities of better career progression for the personnel of AFHQ Civilian Services.

“As their capabilities increase, their career progression will improve, and these personnel will be able to provide better support to the Armed Forces, bolstering our defence system. Ensuring better career progression will also attract best candidates to the AFHQ Civil Service,” he said.

He exhorted the personnel to pay attention to the core values of honesty, discipline and uniformity. The defence minister was of the view that everyone deserves respect, irrespective of their position or rank, emphasising that ego must be shed and the personnel must work as a team.

He called for learning from one another, which makes even hard work easy to accomplish.