Compassion is the recognition of the suffering of others and a desire to take action to address such sufferings. Tolerance, on the other hand, is acceptance and respect for others’ ideas, beliefs, thoughts and practices. Both are foundational values for a civil servant and play a critical role in enhancing the functioning of civil servants.
Role of compassion in functioning of Civil Servants:

• Service Delivery: Compassion can enable a civil servant to work towards providing the basic public services and lead to development of society.
  • For example, Armstrong Pame, an IAS Officer, took upon himself to collect funds for building a 100 KM long road effectively linking Manipur with Assam and Nagaland.
• Good Governance: By cultivating compassion, a civil servant can address the challenges faced by the marginalized sections of society by developing suitable plan/policies and its effective implementation.
  • For instance, in Chennai, an initiative – Home Again – was launched to integrate people, who recover from mental illnesses, with the society.
• Trust Building: It helps in establishing the trust between the government and citizens. It addresses the needs and aspirations of those sections of the society who are disillusioned with the State.
  • For instance, an IAS officer launched the “Fund Your City” campaign in Warangal, asking residents to participate in building infrastructure in the Maoist hit area.

Role of tolerance in functioning of Civil Servants:

• Inclusive governance: In a multi-religious, multicultural nation with a diverse society such as India, tolerance, as a foundational value teaches a civil servant to be responsive and sympathetic to all sections of the society irrespective of their gender, caste or creed.
• Resolve conflicts: Tolerance helps to develop strength and acceptance of different opinions and perspectives. It, thus, promotes understanding and helps resolve conflicts like riots or protests effectively.
• Ethical decision making: Civil servants who have tolerance as a value are more likely to make decisions that prioritize the greater good, fairness, and respect for individual rights. They assess the impact of their actions on all stakeholders before jumping to decision-making.

Civil servants enjoy wide discretionary powers and by adhering to the foundational values like compassion and tolerance, they can foster a more inclusive, equitable, and responsive governance system.