A landmark capacity-building workshop in Patna marked a significant step for Bihar’s administrative evolution. Organized by the Evaluation Directorate, Planning and Development Department, and inaugurated by Development Commissioner Mihir Kumar Singh, the session tackled ‘Evaluation in Government: Frameworks, Methods, and Reporting.’ Noteworthy attendees included Dr. N. Vijayalakshmi (Additional Chief Secretary), Mayank Barbede (Principal Secretary), and Kanwal Tanuj (Secretary). Central to the deliberations was AI’s indispensable role in fostering smart governance.
Singh’s keynote pierced through the veil of underperformance in schemes, attributing gaps to lapses in evaluation rigor. He called for perpetual training and risk-tolerant innovation, asserting, ‘Data-centric decisions and fair audits, coupled with experimental zeal, are the keys to transformative results.’
Dr. Vijayalakshmi illuminated the department’s distinctive ecosystem role—harmonizing inter-departmental initiatives and owning the state’s GDP metrics. This synthesis drives unified progress.
S. Siddharth, ex-Development Commissioner, captivated with his exposition on AI’s utility in analytics. Officials, he warned, must transcend conventional skills to wield AI for data crunching, insight generation, predictive modeling, and reporting precision. Patna’s conclave emerges as a clarion call for AI-infused bureaucracy, poised to redefine public service delivery in Bihar.