Minimum Government & Maximum Service: Dispur moves for Efficiency, to merge Departments

Minimum Government & Maximum Service: Dispur moves for Efficiency, to merge Departments

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: In a significant development towards making the administration fast, efficient and accountable in executing public welfare schemes, the Assam government is ready to merge several of its departments and convert them into single entities.

The move will also ensure optimum services of government employees, saving administrative and establishment costs and other logistic supports.

Sources in Dispur said the government has already chalked out the draft plan on the merger of departments and will place the same before the State Cabinet for the final seal of approval. Even though some departments are opposing the merger, the government is determined to go ahead with its plan.

As per the plan, 11 departments will be merged with their line or identical departments in the first phase. So, once the merger takes place, the number of government departments will reduce to 48 from the existing 59 departments.

Sources said the government will merge the Administrative Reform and Training department with the Personnel department, considering the fact that functioning of both the departments is the same. Soil Conservation and Irrigation departments will be merged with Agriculture department.

While the Higher Education, Secondary Education and Primary Education departments will be a single department, the Guwahati Development Department will merge with Urban Development department. The General Administration department and Secretariat Administration department will be merged into a single entity. The PWD (Roads) and PWD (Buildings) will be a single entity.

The proposal to merge government departments was mooted by a high-powered committee on administrative reform headed by former IAS officer Jatin Hazarika during the previous Congress regime in the State. The erstwhile Congress government could not implement the proposal due to certain hurdles.

According to sources, streamlining the functioning of several departments, reduction in establishment costs, fast adoption and efficient execution of schemes will be some of the prime benefits that the government as well as the people will get to see due to the proposed merger of departments.

Sources said the Irrigation and Soil Conservation departments which are closely associated with Agriculture are currently functioning as three independent departments resulting in overlapping, lack of coordination and poor quality in execution of schemes. The Agriculture department can work with renewed enthusiasm, motivation and vigour once the line departments — Irrigation and Soil Conservation — are merged with it, the source said.

A section of bureaucrats are not keen on the plan, apprehending they will be marginalized or sidelined once their departments are merged with other identical departments, sources said, adding the government will not succumb to any pressure.

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