New Delhi, Apr 20 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address civil servants on the occasion of civil services day on Monday.

He will also confer the Prime Minister’s Awards for Excellence in Public Administration for effective implementation of identified priority programmes and innovation to districts and central/state governments, a statement issued by the Personnel Ministry on Sunday said.

Modi will release e-books on holistic development and on innovations comprising of the success stories on the implementation of the identified priority programmes and Innovations, it said.

A film on the award-winning initiatives will also be screened before the presentation of awards.

This will mark the seventh occasion when Modi will be addressing the national civil services day ceremonies, the statement said.

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the nation’s civil servants on the 17th civil services day on April 21, 2025,” it said.

Civil services day is an occasion for the civil servants across India to rededicate themselves to the cause of citizens and renew their commitment to public service and excellence in their work.

This date was chosen to commemorate the day when Sardar Vallabhai Patel (the first home minister of independent India) addressed the probationers of Administrative Service Officers in 1947 at Metcalfe House Delhi. To mark the civil services day, the government is organising a day-long civil services day conference at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.

The scheme for Prime Minister’s Awards for Excellence in Public Administration has been instituted to recognise the extraordinary and innovative work done by districts and organisations of the central and state governments for the welfare of common citizens.

For the Prime Minister’s Awards scheme 2024, three categories — holistic development of districts, aspirational blocks programme and innovation– have been identified for the awards to be presented on civil services day 2025.

“Fourteen awardees have been shortlisted from 1,588 nominations after a comprehensive evaluation,” the statement said.

The Prime Minister’s Awards consist of a trophy, scroll and an incentive of Rs 20 lakh to the awarded district/organisation to be utilised for implementation of project/programme or bridging resources gaps in any area of public welfare.

The awards ceremony will be followed by a plenary session on “Civil Services Reforms- Challenges and Opportunities”, chaired by Cabinet Secretary T V Somanathan.

Four breakaway sessions on strengthening urban transportation, promoting swasth bharat through Ayushman Bharat PM – Jan Arogya Yojana and Ayushman Arogya Mandir, promoting nutrition for women and children through mission saksham anganwadi and Poshan 2.0, aspirational blocks programme will be conducted to mark the occasion.

Manohar Lal, Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs and Minister of Power, will chair the session on strengthening urban transportation, Jagat Prakash Nadda Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare and Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers will chair the session on promoting swasth bharat through Ayushman Bharat PM Jan Arogya Yojana and Ayushman Arogya Mandir.

Annpurna Devi, Union Minister of Women and Child Development will chair the session on promoting nutrition for women and children through mission saksham anganwadi and Poshan 2.0. B V R Subrahmanyam, CEO, NITI Aayog, will chair the session on aspirational blocks programme.

Senior officials of government of India including secretaries, additional secretaries, joint secretaries, deputy secretaries, assistant secretaries and senior officials of state governments including chief secretaries, additional chief secretaries, principal secretaries and heads of central training institutions, resident commissioners, officials of central services and district collectors will participate in the day-long event. PTI AKV NB