NATIONAL10 [FACE TO FACE (Spotlight Weelky)]

House Monitor

Gautam recalls his three decade long jouney in civil service

By A CORRESPONDENT

Shri Krishna Gautam steadily moved up the bureaucratic ladder to reach its top. Now a Secretary at the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs Gautam served in different ministries under different capacities in his three-decade long carreer. From Public Service Commission to the Ministry of the Parliamentary Affairs, Gautam has gained much experience.

Born in 1999 BS in Gulmi district, Gautam had joined civil service in 2024 BS as a section officer at the Public Service Commission. Since he entered the civil service Gautam has worked in more than half a dozen ministries.

Gautam did his MA in English literature from Agra University, India and Acharya in Sanskrit from Tribhuwan University. Before joining civil service, Gautam taught English at Tribhuwan University.

At a time when the country's bureucracy is in transition, person like Gautam has a handful of challenges in leading the civil service.

Gautam also served as a joint secretary in the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation before being promoted to special secretary.

He served for nearly eight years as a section officer. Gautam was promoted to under secretary in 2032 BS and joint secetary in 2044 BS.

Besides being busy with bureucratic functions, Gautam has also written more than half a dozen of books and dozens of articles. He still writes articles for tour and travel magazines published from Nepal.

"I want to spend more time in writing and studying," says Gautam whose essay and short stories have already been published in different literature magazines.

From teaching to civil service, Gautam has accumulated lots of experiences. "During my teaching days I was more like an administrator and now I am more of an academician in bureucracy," remarks Gautam.

Having presented more than dozens of papers in national and international seminars and symposiums held in different parts of the country, Gautam has travelled extensively in Nepal.

Apart from Nepali, Sanskrit and English, Gautam is also fluent in Hindi writing. A decade after being promoted to the post of joint secretary, Gautam secured the position of Special Secretary at Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture.

Gautam, however, says he is frustrated with the over politicization of civil service. The role of civil servant is to perform duty to fulfill aspiration of the people and therefore needs to be fair and impartial in performing duty, Gautam views.

"If a bureucrat gives more priority to financial perks and benefits, he\she can never deliver the duty prescribed by the constitution," says Gautam.

Although he has spent most of his life in bureaucracy, Gautam sees media is the best place to serve.

In the final years of his decades long carreer, Gautam is leading the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs and helping the people's representatives to smoothly discharge their duties and responsibilities.