On April 15, 1958, the then Union Home Minister Pandit Govind Ballabh Pant announced in the Lok Sabha, that the Government would set up a National Academy of Administration, where training would be given to all the recruits of the Civil Services. The Ministry of Home Affairs also decided to amalgamate the IAS Training School, Delhi and the IAS Staff College, Shimla to form a National Academy of Administration to be setup in Mussoorie’s Charleville Estate. On the first day of September, 1959 curtains were drawn on the training in Metcalfe House. Union Home Minister Pandit Govind Ballabh Pant was instrumental in effecting this shift to Mussoorie. Charleville was not a very comfortable venue initially but niggling glitches and gaps were wrinkled out in a short time. For example, there was no facility of horse riding at start but twenty horses were bought and the thud of hooves resounded in Charleville Estate with in two months.
The Charleville Hotel was built in 1854 by General Wilkinson on the grounds of Chajauli Estate, a part of the abutting Chajauli Patti. Was the name Charleville French in origin? Apparently not. The locals always called it ‘Charley-Biley’ – apparently Mr. Hobson, the retired Manager of the Mussoorie Bank, purchased it in 1861 and named it after his two sons: Charlie and Billy.
The grounds of Happy Valley were acquired in 1904 by the brewer V.A. Mackinnon. He started the Happy Valley Club with tennis courts, while gymkhanas were held on the polo ground field. The last record of a ‘Pagal Gymkhana’ dates back to 19th June 1943, to raise funds for the Red Cross during World War II.
The main building of the erstwhile Charleville complex was destroyed in a fire in 1984. However, its old architecture can still be seen in some of the buildings inside the main campus of the Academy. The Ladies' Block and the G.B. Pant Block were damaged in earthquake of 1991 and on these two sites, the two new buildings viz. 'Dhruvshila' and 'Kalindi Guest House' came up. A part of the “Happy Valley Club” extending right below the Charleville Hotel, now belongs to the Academy. This has the horse-riding ground, the shooting range and the sports club. The racecourse and polo ground, that was carved out of a hillside in 1904, were leased by the Uttar Pradesh government to the Academy. It is used, for housing the horse-riding establishment and conducting various sports events.
In October 1972, the name of the Academy was changed to "Lal Bahadur Shastri Academy of Administration" and in July 1973 the word "National" was added to it. The Academy is now known as the “Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration" (LBSNAA). There have been subsequent expansions and several new buildings have been constructed and others acquired over the years.
CHRONOLOGY
| 1958 | Announcement in the Lok Sabha by the Union Home Minister Pandit Govind Ballabh Pant to setup the National Academy of Administration. |
| 1959 | Academy established in Mussoorie along with Director's Office, Language Block (later renamed Charleville after renovation), Sardar Patel Hall (SPH) and Happy Valley Guest House. |
| 1960 | A common FC for IAS, IFS and other Central Services was introduced. |
| 1969 | Sandwich Pattern of training introduced in the Academy which included Phase-I, District Training in the respective State Cadres followed by Phase-II. |
| 1970 | Academy functioned under the Ministry of Home Affairs from the date of inception till 1970, again from 1977 to 1985. |
| 1970-1977 | Academy functioned under Cabinet Secretariat. |
| 1972 | Name changed to “Lal Bahadur Shastri Academy of Administration”. |
| 1973 | Subsequently, the word “National” was added and it became “Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration”. |
| 1975-1978 | Ganga, Kaveri and Narmada hostels constructed. |
| 1984 | In May, 1984, a portion of the Campus which housed the Officers' Mess, the Libray, VIP Guest House, Director's Residence etc., was destroyed in a fire accident. |
| 1985 | Academy began functioning under the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Government of India. |
| 1988 | NIC Training Unit established. |
| 1989 | Centre for Rural Studies (initially called the Land Reform Unit) established. |
| 1991 | In October, 1991, the Uttarkashi earthquake severely damaged the Ladies' Block and the G.B. Pant Block, and on these two sites, 'Dhruvshila' and 'Kalindi Guest House' came up. |
| 1991 | Sampoornanand Auditorium constructed by UP Government and named after the 2nd Chief Minister of the State. |
| 1992 | Karamshila Building was inaugurated by the then Vice President of India Shri K.R. Narayanan. |
| 1995 | National Gender Centre, a registered society under Societies Registration Act-1860, was setup. |
| 1996 | Kalindi Bhavan inaugurated by the then Union Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions and Parliamentary Affairs Shri S.R. Balasubramaniam. |
| 1996 | Dhruvshila Bhavan inaugurated by the then Minister of State, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions and Parliamentary Affairs Shri S.R. Balasubramaniam. |
| 2004 | Hospital Block inaugurated by the then Minister of Home Affairs Shri Shivraj V. Patil. |
| 2004 | Centre for Disaster Management inaugurated. |
| 2010 |
Gyanshila Building operationalize. Silverwood Executive Hostel was inaugurated. |
| 2012 | Mahanadi Executive Hostel was inaugurated. |
| 2014 | National Centre for Leadership Development & Competency Assessment (NCLDCA) a registered society under Societies Registration Act-1860, was setup. |
| 2015 | Aadharshila Block inaugurated by Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions Dr. Jitendra Singh. |
| 2016 | Originally established as Centre for Cooperatives & Rural Development in 1995, it was renamed as Centre for Public Systems Management (CPSM). |
| 2017 | Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi laid the foundation stones of the new hostel at Monastry Estate; Horse stables and residences for the horse-riding establishment; and 400m Synthetic Track at Polo ground. |
| 2018 | The state of the art Chanakya Hall was inaugurated. |
