Calls for integrated governance, process simplification and full digitization of services across J&K
SRINAGAR, MAY 25: Chief Secretary, Atal Dulloo, on Monday chaired a high-level review meeting with Administrative Secretaries of all departments to assess the Action Taken Reports (ATRs) on implementation of actionable points emerging from the Prime Minister’s interaction with Secretaries to the Government of India, with special emphasis on strengthening the “Whole of Government” approach, enhancing Ease of Living through end-to-end digitization of public services and undertaking comprehensive process reforms across the country.
During the meeting, the Chief Secretary, as per an official statement, reiterated that the core objective of these reforms is to establish integrated governance, citizen-centric administration and technology-driven systems aimed at ensuring efficient, transparent and accountable delivery of services. He emphasized that departments must move beyond conventional silo-based functioning and work in close coordination to achieve larger developmental goals envisioned under Viksit Bharat @2047.
A detailed presentation on the Action Taken Reports pertaining to various reform initiatives was given by the Planning Development & Monitoring Department. The meeting was informed that several departments including Finance, School Education, Skill Development, Health & Medical Education, Housing & Urban Development, Agriculture Production, Social Welfare, Public Works, Tourism and Higher Education Departments have already adopted convergence-based governance models involving inter-departmental coordination, digital integration and collaborative implementation mechanisms.
Regarding the points of School Education Department it was revealed that vocational education has been expanded to more than 1,350 schools across Jammu & Kashmir with enrolment of over 1.41 lakh students, besides integration of digital platforms, ICT laboratories and smart classrooms under the framework of NEP-2020.
Similarly with respect to the Skill Development Department it was highlighted that flagship initiatives including Mission YUVA and PM Vishwakarma are being implemented through coordinated institutional mechanisms involving multiple departments, financial institutions and academic organisations.
The Health & Medical Education Department proposed integrated planning with allied departments for convergence of health, sanitation, nutrition, education and livelihood initiatives, while the Housing & Urban Development Department highlighted its focus on technology-driven governance, sustainable urban planning and citizen-centric reforms for improving urban living standards.
The meeting was further informed that departments including Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer Affairs, ARI & Trainings, Disaster Management, Labour & Employment and Information Department have introduced integrated digital governance systems, interoperable platforms and real-time monitoring mechanisms aimed at improving transparency, accountability and ease of access to public services.
Reviewing reforms aimed at enhancing Ease of Living, the meeting was apprised that under the J&K Jan Vishwas reforms, around 32 criminal provisions across 20 Acts have been decriminalized to reduce compliance burden and improve citizen convenience, while 19 obsolete laws have been repealed for simplification of the statutory framework and promotion of ease of doing business.
The Chief Secretary also reviewed the proposal for achieving 100 percent end-to-end digitization of Government-to-Citizen (G2C) services across the Union Territory. The meeting was informed that 1,548 G2C services have already been digitized under the E-Unnat platform, while nearly 300 additional services are presently under development.
The meeting was informed that in the first phase, 302 services across key departments including Agriculture, Higher Education, Housing & Urban Development, Revenue, Health and Power Development Departments have been identified for elimination of offline processes and full digital transformation.
The implementation roadmap includes phased execution covering policy notification, digitization audit, workflow re-engineering, system integration, capacity building, real-time monitoring and third-party audits.
Stressing upon departments to undertake comprehensive process re-engineering before digitization, the Chief Secretary directed all departments to simplify existing G2G, G2B and G2C procedures in order to eliminate bottlenecks and promote faster, simpler and citizen-friendly governance mechanisms.
The meeting also reviewed progress achieved under Vision 2030 and Vision 2047 targets. It was informed that several departments have already submitted quantifiable targets, achievements, gap analysis and timelines for bridging developmental gaps, while the remaining departments have been asked to furnish their inputs for preparation of a comprehensive Vision document for Jammu & Kashmir.
