New Delhi, Aug 17 (IANS) Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday interacted with Officer Trainees of the Indian Defence Estates Service (2025 Batch), urging them to learn to deliver services in a people-friendly manner.

The defence minister emphasised the role of public servants in meeting the evolving aspirations of citizens.

He said civil servants must play a major role with utmost ‘Seva Bhav’, delivering the services in a people-friendly manner.

Rajnath Singh added that the officers should meet people regularly and listen to their grievances to understand their concerns and instil a sense of assurance.

The batch of budding officers, undergoing training at the National Institute of Defence Estates Management (NIDEM), was joined by Director General Defence Estates, Shobha Gupta, at the interaction.

Rajnath Singh also appreciated the role of the Defence Estates Department in the management of defence land and municipal administration of the Cantonment Boards across the country.

On an earlier occasion, the defence minister had asked a batch of IDES officers to transform Cantonment Boards into smart, green and sustainable urban ecosystems in line with the government’s vision of a developed India by 2047, setting 2035 as a milestone year.

Delivering the keynote address at Manthan 2025 – Strategic Roadmap to Viksit Bharat @2047, a two-day national conference organised by the Directorate General of Defence Estates (DGDE) in New Delhi, the defence minister lauded IDES officers for their dual role of managing more than 18 lakh acres of defence land and ensuring the welfare of civilians across 61 cantonments.

Rajnath Singh stressed the need to develop cantonments like modern cities by continuously upgrading systems and processes to make service delivery more efficient, transparent and citizen-friendly.

“We must increase digital services so that people can avail transparent and timely services from home. We must increase citizen participation so that the residents become partners in the future planning of cantonments,” he said.

–IANS

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