Ministry of Panchayati Raj, encouraged by the resounding success and transformative outcomes of the previous editions of Special Campaign, is all set to act as an active partner during Implementation Phase (2–31 October, 2024) of Special Campaign 4.0 steered by Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Government of India. The Special Campaign conducted in Ministry of Panchayati Raj primarily focuses upon encouraging clean and pro-environment workplaces for its officials and staff–members and welcoming reception areas for visitors.
The Ministry of Panchayati Raj’s adoption of perpetual best practices under the Special Campaign has resulted in 100% file work execution through e-Office, efficient management and productive use of office spaces, implementation of environmentally friendly practices, maintaining a clean and hygienic workplace, ensuring 100% electronic scrap disposal and achieving zero pendency of public grievances.
For the fourth edition of the Special Campaign, the Ministry of Panchayati Raj has diligently and promptly completed all preparations on the suggested points within the stipulated timeframe. In a Senior Officers’ Meeting held on 19th September 2024, chaired by Shri Vivek Bharadwaj, Secretary, Ministry of Panchayati Raj, an in-depth discussion took place regarding the smooth execution and successful implementation of the Special Campaign 4.0 to be organized from 2nd October, 2024 to 31st October, 2024.
Emphasizing the importance of institutionalizing Swachhata and minimizing pendency in Government offices, Secretary Shri Vivek Bharadwaj advised all the Divisions to work in a concerted and collaborative manner for the best results as per the parameters identified by DARPG for Special Campaign 4.0, which is a campaign having an overarching goal to promote Good Governance through Swachhata.
Taking significant steps toward addressing public grievances, the Ministry of Panchayati Raj has decided to send teams of officials to various States/ UTs to ensure swift resolution of complaints, given the gravity of the issues raised. The objective is clear: in line with the vision of the Hon’ble Prime Minister, public grievances must be addressed within a set timeframe, focusing on the merit of the petition and ensuring the satisfaction of the applicant. Beginning in September, Ministry officials have been dispatched to the States, and out of 833 public grievances received till date during the month of September, 644 were resolved.
The Ministry of Panchayati Raj operates 100% on the eOffice platform, and special provisions have been made for the timely weeding out and effective disposal of physical papers and materials. The Special Campaign provides an excellent opportunity to accelerate this process with dedicated focus. Moreover, productivity among officers and employees is being enhanced by increasing greenery within the Ministry’s office premises. Saplings have been abundantly planted in flower pots to beautify all corridors and reception areas, a practice that will continue into the future.
During the Preparatory Phase of Special Campaign 4.0, sincere efforts have been made to raise awareness, mobilize officials and ensure their active participation in making Special Campaign 4.0 a grand success by the way of making Swachhata “everyone’s business” and “a way of life”. State-specific engagement of Nodal Officers and dedicated Public Grievances Redressal Cell helped in disposal of public grievances within a month’s time and thus there was no pendency.
The Ministry of Panchayati Raj has focused on various activities and aspects of Special Campaign 4.0, including conducting special cleanliness drives and mobilizing the government functionaries to streamlining processes and procedures to strengthen grievance redressal mechanism to ensure fast disposal of grievances at all levels. Special Campaign 4.0 in the Ministry of Panchayati Raj will focus on creating healthier workspaces, keeping workplace tools in working order, increasing efficiency / improving productivity i.e. speed and quality of work and boosting the morale of the employees / staff-members (regular, contractual and outsourced) through a clean, tidy and organized work environment. Clean Desk / Clean Office / Clean Corridor / Clean Workstation and other best practices will be promoted through social media on regular basis.
Necessary action will be taken to give feel-good environment by placing flower pots, sapling pots etc. in both the office premises of Jeevan Bharati Building and Jeevan Prakash Building. Special emphasis will be given on behavioural / attitudinal changes towards cleanliness and sanitation for tackling workplace hygiene issues considerately along with disposal of pending matters such as references from Members of Parliament, Parliamentary Assurances, References received from State Governments, Inter-Ministerial Consultation, Public Representations/ Grievances, better record management, review and weeding out papers on regular basis as we move towards a more sustainable future for everyone.
A Mini Workshop on Record Management, followed by a meeting with Record Officers, was held on 6th September 2024 under the Chairmanship of the Economic Adviser, Ministry of Panchayati Raj Dr. Bijaya Kumar Behera to discuss preparations for the upcoming Special Campaign 4.0, scheduled from 2nd October to 31st October 2024. During the workshop, Dr. Behera emphasized the importance of timely cooperation for the success of Special Campaign 4.0, and shared insights and strategies for capacity building of Record Officers on record keeping and helping them for categorization of files for preservation, distribution and retention etc. as per Record Retention Schedule. Since the Ministry of Panchayati Raj operates entirely on an e-platform with very few physical files, the focus was placed on reviewing and weeding out e-files in coordination with NIC. Section officers were instructed to review the Record Retention Schedules, especially for critical documents, and delete outdated e-files that affect efficiency of the e-office. Targets were set for the review and action on files across various Divisions/ Sections, totalling 1525 files to be addressed during the Special Campaign 4.0.
