About the Institute

Genesis

The Institute of Secretariat Training and Management (ISTM) formally came into being in May, 1948, which was known at that time as the “Secretariat Training School”. The present title of the Institute as “Institute of Secretariat Training and Management” or ISTM, in short, was awarded later with the motto “Efficiency and the Public Good”.

The mandate of the Institute is to impart training to officers of Central Secretariat Service (CSS), Central Secretariat Stenographers Service (CSSS) and officers of other organised/subsidiary services functioning in the Central Secretariat. CSS officers form the backbone of the Central Government Ministries/Departments and normally hold various positions up to the level of Joint Secretaries. The key responsibilities of the CSS officers include policy formulation, execution, monitoring and review.

The Institute also provides training support to the State Governments, Union Territory Administrations, Central Public Sector Enterprises, Central Autonomous Bodies and other organizations in specialised and general areas. The Institute is entrusted with the task of providing orientation training to the officers coming on deputation to the Central Government under the Central Staffing Scheme as Deputy Secretary and Director. The ISTM is the nodal institute for capacity building of Central Government officers for implementation of Right to Information Act, 2005. ISTM is the lead institute in the areas of Training of Trainers and conducts national and international Training of Trainers courses.Besides, probationers of various organised services, like that of the IAS, IES. IFS and ICLS attend the short duration training programmes on Office Management, Personnel Management and Financial Management as well as, Central Secretariat Practices at ISTM.

ISTM also conducts Management Development Programme (MDP) for officers of the level of Deputy Secretary and above of the Government of India. The areas covered are Financial Management, Management Principles, Good Governance, Knowledge Management, Behavioural Techniques and Cabinet Note Preparation in order to orient them towards effective service delivery in the Central Government.

Some other activities of the Institute include undertaking research studies, providing consultancy services and development of trainers in training techniques. The Institute also organizes workshops/seminars for SAARC and Commonwealth countries and conducts International Training of Trainers programme through ITEC programme of the Ministry of External Affairs.

Status

ISTM is an “Attached Office” under the Department of Personnel & Training, Government of India. The Head of the Institute is “Director”, who is an officer of the level of Joint Secretary to the Government of India.