Minister of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Dr. Jitendra Singh today emphasised that professional excellence and good governance should go hand in hand in India’s development journey.

Mr. Singh said this while interacting with the delegation of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI), in New Delhi. He underlined that professionals in the corporate sector have an important role in promoting responsible governance, ethical practices and institutional accountability and noted that good corporate governance is central to India’s development.

During the interaction, Dr. Singh highlighted the importance of creating a stronger culture of ethical entrepreneurship and good governance. He said that professional institutions such as ICSI have an important role in promoting governance standards and facilitating practices that contribute to institutional excellence.

The Union Minister also called for greater contribution of Company Secretaries to India’s growth, noting that their professional expertise can play an important role in strengthening governance practices across the corporate and economic ecosystem.

The delegation invited Dr Singh to be the Guest of Honour at the presentation ceremony of the 26th ICSI National Awards for Excellence in Corporate Governance, to be held next year.

The Minister took note of ICSI’s initiatives relating to Panchayat Governance and local-body governance. He appreciated the Institute’s efforts to prepare manuals and training material in multiple languages. Mr Singh also praised ICSI’s efforts towards digitalisation of institutional processes, including the adoption of electronic voting and a preferential voting system for its elections.