Union Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare and Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Friday directed officials to adopt a time-bound, result-oriented and technology-driven governance model to ensure that farmers, rural citizens and the poor receive government benefits without unnecessary delays or procedural hurdles.
A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi issued key governance directives during the Union Council of Ministers meeting, Shivraj Singh Chouhan chaired a high-level review meeting with senior officials from the Ministries of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare and Rural Development.
During the meeting, the Union Minister said governance should be visible in the lives of people and not remain confined to official files. He stressed that farmers and ordinary citizens should not be forced to “run from pillar to post” either for grievance redressal or to access the benefits of government schemes.
Referring to Prime Minister Modi’s governance mantra of “Reform, Perform, Transform and Inform,” Chouhan said reforms in administration and service delivery would bring happiness and prosperity to farmers and rural communities.
The Minister instructed departments including Agriculture, Rural Development, Land Resources and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) to strengthen grievance redressal mechanisms and make them more accountable and responsive.
He directed the formation of dedicated teams of at least 10 officers each in both ministries to conduct daily reviews of complaints, citizen representations, public grievances and issues raised through various portals.
Chouhan stressed that grievance redressal should not remain limited to disposal on paper and officials must verify whether actual relief has reached beneficiaries on the ground. He noted that in some cases, discrepancies had emerged between official records and field realities during direct interactions with beneficiaries.
The Minister announced that grievance redressal systems would now be reviewed every month to monitor outcomes and implementation effectiveness.
Calling for simplification of rules and procedures, Chouhan said outdated regulations and excessive licensing systems should be reviewed and replaced with simpler mechanisms wherever possible. He directed departments to identify within one week all procedural bottlenecks that delay implementation and create inconvenience for beneficiaries.
The review meeting also focused on greater use of Artificial Intelligence, digital governance, data integration and technology-driven monitoring systems across agriculture and rural development sectors.
Chouhan instructed officials to create a dedicated team to study technological integration and submit practical proposals for improving transparency, efficiency and inter-departmental coordination.
The Minister also stressed reforms in administrative work culture, including improvements in drafting, file preparation and decision-making processes at all levels. He directed departments to strengthen training and capacity-building programmes for officials to ensure faster and more effective governance.
Expressing concern over pending court cases involving government departments, Chouhan instructed officials to review litigation matters, appoint nodal officers and strengthen legal preparation to protect public interest.
The meeting also discussed preparation of departmental Vision Documents aligned with the goal of Viksit Bharat 2047. Departments were asked to prepare annual, quarterly and weekly action plans to improve monitoring and performance assessment.
Chouhan further directed officials to improve communication and outreach regarding government schemes and reforms through farmer organisations, social media, graphics, short videos and beneficiary stories.
He said reforms should be communicated widely among stakeholders in the spirit of a “Reform Utsav” so that people are aware of changes being introduced for their benefit.
The Minister also stressed stronger coordination among agriculture, animal husbandry, fisheries, food processing and allied sectors to promote integrated farming and value addition.
