Etiquette lessons are still mandatory for those aspiring to become senior government officials
the spoon against the side of the teacup: one point deducted. One too many slices of carrot on the fork: another two points lost. When Sarim was training to become a civil servant in Pakistan, he was graded on his table manners. Everyone in his class was so cautious during the test that they would barely eat, he chuckles.
The centre’s guide to etiquette includes detailed passages on how to hold and use cutlery. It recommends the “Continental” style—cutting and eating each mouthful in turn, with the fork in the left hand, tines down—over the “American” practice of cutting the entire serving into bite-sized pieces and then scooping them up with the fork, tines up. Another section explains in depth the art of “managing bread and rolls”.
In India the emphasis on colonial-era etiquette for trainees has waned as the civil service has become more inclusive. Rich, cosmopolitan Indians have turned to careers in banking and business, “more than we have pushed them out”, says an Indian official who hails from a rural part of the state of Rajasthan.
The old ways are the best ways for Pakistan, argues Naima. Just because the British introduced them does not make them wrong, she says. Indeed, one reason colonial habits endure in Pakistan is because they suit its conservative culture, she argues. The formal etiquette helps the bureaucracy set itself apart, in her view. In hierarchical places like South Asia, bureaucrats are the top of the pile, says Ishtiaq Jamil of the University of Bergen. Rigid decorum adds to their sense of importance.
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