New Delhi, July 19 (IANS) SpeakIn, Asia's largest network of experts and thought leaders bringing the best of knowledge leaders to the forefront, has announced its first-of-a-kind initiative to recognise 10 most distinguished IAS officers who have created impact and inspiration beyond their call of duty.

Among the officers who feature in the inaugural release picked by an eminent jury are Amitabh Kant (1980, Kerala Cadre - Celebrating a Lifetime Achievement for a career of exemplary impact), Anil Srivastava (1985, MP Cadre - Excellence in Heavy Industries, Transport & Mobility), Armstrong Pame (2009, Manipur Cadre- Excellence in Public Policy & Governance), Bhupesh Chaudhary (2014, AGMUT Cadre - Excellence in Food, Water, Agriculture & Livelihood), Hari Chandana Dasari (2010, Telangana Cadre- Excellence in ESGs, SDGs & Climate Change), Iqbal Singh Chahal (1989, Maharashtra Cadre - Excellence in Crisis Management), Rakesh Gupta (1997 batch, Haryana Cadre Excellence in Public Policy & Governance), Sanjeev Kaushik (1992, Kerala Cadre - Excellence in Business & Finance), Santosh Misra (2000, TN Cadre - Excellence in Innovation & Technology), and Suhas Lalinakere Yathiraj (2007, UP Cadre - Excellence in Public Policy & Governance).

This recognition will be a quarterly issue that will have SpeakIn feature 10 distinguished administrative officers selected from across a set of evolving categories. The selection in each feature will follow a three-month long nomination and a multi-factor evaluation process.

Commenting on the launch of its new intellectual property, Deepshikha Kumar, Founder and Managing Partner of SpeakIn, said, "While many opportunities and discussions applaud achievements in the corporate world, we as a society have left a lot of room to appreciate the back-bone of governance and public administration - our officers.

"There are phenomenal stories of leadership, conviction and massive impact which need to be told and appreciated. Towards this, SpeakIn has launched a new quarterly series to recognise 10 most distinguished Indian Administrative Service officers."

While good governance has always been key to progress in on-ground execution, our IAS officers both at the Central and state level have assumed even critical significance as India responded to the pandemic in the past year.

From framing, implementing and evaluating policy decisions to working with the public at large and to partnering with key stakeholders, our officers have shaped the country's response and preparedness. It was time the stories of impact and excellence were celebrated, not just in crisis but beyond.

"It took a hugely credible jury including past officers, over 6 months to build the feature from nominations to adjudging the excellence. The evaluation covered five parameters including - Innovation, Public awareness of impact generated, Ability to leverage technology, people and processes, Effectiveness in forging partnerships with businesses and ecosystem to bring about a positive change, and Display of exemplary courage and conviction through action and leadership," added Deepshikha.

The 10 categories presented in the launch feature include Food, Water, Agriculture and Livelihood, Innovation and Technology, ESG, SDG and Climate Change, Public Policy and Governance, Crisis Management, Business and Finance, Heavy Industries, Transport and Mobility and a Lifetime Achievement for a career of exemplary impact.

Two Oceans Strategy, led by Tom Mills, partnered with SpeakIn for this first-of-its-kind initiative especially to recognise impact in ESG, climate change and public policy and governance.

In order to ensure that only the best and tallest leaders join the platform, the feature was handpicked by an esteemed jury comprising Manish Kumar (IAS and Former MD and CEO, NSDC), Richard Rekhy (Former India CEO, KPMG), Raman Sidhu (Chairperson and CEO, EBG Federation), P.K. Misra (Former Secretary, DoPT and Former Secretary, Steel), Tom Mills (Director, Two Oceans Strategy), Nilaya Varma (Co-Founder and CEO, Primus Partners) and Deepshikha Kumar (Founder and Managing Partner, SpeakIn).

SpeakIn will also organise an annual awards ceremony in New Delhi at the end of the year featuring administrative officers, who make it to the quarterly issues released through the year. The awardees selected by jury members will be felicitated during the event.

About SpeakIn:

SpeakIn is Asia's finest and largest tech-enabled platform to find the best of experts, speakers and thought leaders from the region. With over 18,000 (and growing) experts in our network globally, SpeakIn is engaged by business organisations, academic institutions, associations and investment management companies to access curated experts as mentors and coaches and for forum-based knowledge sessions.

The awardees:

* Amitabh Kant (1980 batch, Kerala Cadre) - Lifetime Achievement
* Anil Srivastava (1985 batch, Madhya Pradesh Cadre) - Excellence in Heavy Industries, Transport & Mobility
* Armstrong Pame (2009 batch, Manipur Cadre) - Excellence in Public Policy & Governance
* Bhupesh Chaudhary (2014 batch, AGMUT Cadre) - Excellence in Food, Water, Agriculture & Livelihood
* Hari Chandana Dasari (2010 batch, Telangana Cadre) - Excellence in ESGs, SDGs & Climate Change
* Iqbal Singh Chahal (1989 batch, Maharashtra Cadre) - Excellence in Crisis Management
* Rakesh Gupta (1997 batch, Haryana Cadre) - Excellence in Public Policy & Governance
* Sanjeev Kaushik (1992 batch, Kerala Cadre) - Excellence in Business & Finance
* Santosh Misra (2000 batch, Tamil Nadu Cadre) - Excellence in Innovation & Technology
* Suhas Lalinakere Yathiraj (2007 batch, Uttar Pradesh Cadre) - Excellence in Public Policy & Governance