National Anubhav Awards 2025: Celebrating a Decade of Honouring Retired Employees’ Contributions

Why in news ?

• The National Anubhav Awards 2025 mark a significant milestone—celebrating 10 years of the Anubhav Portal, an innovative platform that documents and honours the invaluable experiences and contributions of retired government employees. Launched under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2015, this initiative has not only preserved India’s rich administrative history through personal memoirs but has also encouraged transparency, learning, and institutional memory within the government.
• On 11 August 2025, the Department of Pension & Pensioners’ Welfare (DoPPW) announced the celebrations for the 10th anniversary of these awards. This recognition serves as a unique tribute to the retired workforce whose decades of service have contributed significantly to nation-building.

Background and Evolution of the National Anubhav Awards Scheme

• The scheme was launched with the objective to collect, preserve, and honour the experiences of retiring officials, helping to sustain institutional knowledge and inspire future generations of civil servants. Retired employees can submit their personal memoirs up to eight months before retirement or within three years post-retirement.
• These submissions are published on the Anubhav Portal by their respective ministries and evaluated for awards.
• Over the years, the scheme has evolved with several reforms aimed at enhancing participation and fairness:
  • 2015: Introduction of 5 National Anubhav Awards.
  • 2022: Launch of the ‘Anubhav Awardees’ Speak’ webinar series to motivate soon-to-retire employees by sharing awardees’ insights.
  • 2023: Addition of 10 Jury Awards alongside the main 5 awards, categorized by pay scale groups (Levels 1–6, 7–12, and 13+).
  • 2024: Implementation of an objective marking system and extension of eligibility to 12 Public Sector Banks and Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs).
  • 2025: Further refinement of marking criteria with added weightage for feedback and suggestions; the scheme was formally notified for 2026.

Impact and Achievements Over the Past Decade

The National Anubhav Awards have had a significant impact on preserving government institutional memory and motivating public servants:

• Over 12,500 memoirs published on the Anubhav Portal.
• A total of 59 Anubhav Awards and 19 Jury Awards conferred across 7 ceremonies (except 2020–21, due to the COVID-19 pandemic).
• Leading contributors include organisations such as CRPF, CISF, and DRDO.
• Major award winners span DRDO, CRPF, and the Ministry of Railways.

Highlights of the National Anubhav Awards 2025 Ceremony

The 8th edition of the ceremony is scheduled for 18 August 2025 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, where Dr. Jitendra Singh, Minister of State (Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions), will felicitate 15 distinguished awardees from 11 ministries and departments.

• Participation: 42 ministries, departments, and organisations took part.
• Entries: Approximately 1,500 write-ups published during 2025.
• Awardees: 15 exceptional memoirs were selected after a rigorous evaluation process.

New Milestones and Social Significance

• For the first time, employees from the State Bank of India (SBI) and Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) received awards, marking expanded participation beyond traditional government sectors.
• Women constitute one-third of the awardees, reflecting the increasing engagement and leadership of women in public governance.