PM honours Sikkim bureaucrat from city
LUCKNOW:An alumna of La Martiniere Girls College and Lucknow University, Aishvarya Singh made her city proud when she was awarded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on April 21 for successful implementation of the Swachh Bharat Mission in West Sikkim district of Sikkim. An IAS officer of 2008 batch, Aishvarya is currently the district magistrate of West Sikkim.
“My district and I have been felicitated with the prestigious Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration on the occasion of the 10th Civil Services Day at New Delhi on April 21, 2016,” she posted on a social media website.
“This award has been given away for successful implementation of the Swachh Bharat Mission (gramin) in my district which has been declared open defecation-free on December 31, 2015, way ahead of the national timeline of October 2, 2019. My district was shortlisted under the NE & hill category from among more than 600 districts in the country. After a rigorous process of field verification, presentation by the DM, national call centre verification on the field and final interview of the DM by an empowered committee headed by the cabinet secretary of India, we were selected for the award,” she wrote. She said her alma mater La Martiniere Girls’ College in Lucknow played a vital role in getting her where she had reached today. “This award is also for my school, my principal Keelor, all my teachers from Lower Prep to Class 12 and the school staff,” said Aishvarya, a 1997-batch Martinian.
“This award is especially dedicated to Prof Sameera Maiti, my teacher who passed away recently. She would have been extremely happy today,” she added.
The bureaucrat said the award was for her district West Sikkim, her team and locals. She said she was humbled by the wishes and messages she had been receiving from friends, relatives and wellwishers. “I would like to convey my heartfelt gratitude to all. Your words of encouragement make me want to strive even harder. This would not have been possible without my parents’ untiring support and unconditional love,” she added.
Way back in 2004, Aishvarya had locked horns with Lucknow University for the Chancellor’s Gold Medal. It was only after she won that the university introduced the system of inviting applications for the coveted medal. Prior to that, head of the departments nominated any student they wished to.