The Maharashtra government has mandated five major process re-engineering reforms across all administrative departments to reduce physical office visits, simplify approval procedures and accelerate public service delivery, according to a Government Resolution (GR) issued by the Planning Department.
Issued on Monday, the Government Process Re-engineering (GPR) initiative aims to make government welfare schemes and routine administrative services more transparent, accessible and digital-first.
Under the new framework, departments have been directed to adopt online verification and digital validation systems to minimise the need for citizens to visit government offices. Application forms will be simplified by auto-fetching citizen data from existing databases, including Aadhaar and Maha Samanvay.
The government has also directed departments to phase out physical submission of documents wherever digital records are available. Services will increasingly rely on DigiLocker, API-based interoperability and self-declarations to streamline processing.
To reduce bureaucratic delays, the GR limits decision-making to a maximum of three administrative tiers, with clearly defined roles and responsibilities at each stage. Departments have also been asked to shorten processing timelines through greater use of technology, supported by revised statutory timelines under the Right to Services (RTS) Act.
A state-level GPR Approval Committee, chaired by the Chief Secretary, will oversee the implementation of the reforms. The committee will evaluate department-wise proposals, validate digital workflows, approve revised application forms and sanction streamlined approval structures.
For procedural changes that do not require legislative amendments or major policy decisions, administrative department secretaries have been authorised to issue orders directly. State IT agency MahaIT has been tasked with upgrading government portals and developing the digital infrastructure needed to implement the reforms.
The initiative builds on the administrative reforms announced by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis under the “Zero Bureaucracy” model, which focuses on process re-engineering and restructuring government departments to enable faster decision-making and improve public service delivery.
As part of the overhaul, the state cabinet has approved the reorganisation of the Maharashtra Secretariat, increasing the number of administrative departments from 33 to 45 without creating additional posts.
Fadnavis has said administrative efficiency depends on simplifying processes rather than expanding bureaucratic hierarchies, and has advocated operating government departments with the agility and innovation of startups.
(With inputs from IANS)
