President Ram Nath Kovind today said there was a rising expectation among the people for greater efficiency in public service delivery and asked civil servants to use information technology and other tools to meet the task.

 He told a group of officer trainees that their work and responsibilities sit at the defining edge of “good governance” in the country.

"Therefore, they have to maintain the highest standard of ethics, accountability and transparency at all times in their respective fields. They have an equally critical role to play in the implementation of government schemes and projects," Kovind said.

Forty-one officer trainees of Class-I Accounts and Finance Service, attending the 25th professional training course at the National Institute of Financial Management, Faridabad, called on the President at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Kovind told them that the mantra of the government is “minimum government, maximum governance”.

"At the same time, there is a rising expectation among our citizens for greater efficiency in public service delivery today.

"The task at hand for civil servants is demanding. But with greater integration of technology in their work, be it new IT platforms, payment gateways or the endless possibilities of cyberspace, they can achieve the desired results," the president said.

Kovind said that reforming the accounting, budget and audit systems and constantly updating them in line with global best practices must also be high on their agenda.