Uttarakhand: Mapping of government assets to be completed in two months; Chief Secretary issues directives for geofencing

Chief Secretary Anand Bardhan held a meeting via video conferencing with District Magistrates at the Secretariat on Tuesday to review key issues across various departments. While reviewing matters related to e-Office implementation, monitoring of government assets, single-use plastic, and pensions for retired employees, he directed officials to take time-bound action.

The Chief Secretary emphasized the need for 100% implementation of the e-Office system across all departments. He stated that in departments where the status of file processing and management is unsatisfactory, regular reviews must be conducted to ensure improvement. Instructions were also issued to share the commendable work and innovations of departments during meetings of the Secretaries’ Committee.

All assets to be uploaded to the portal within two months

The Chief Secretary directed the mandatory mapping of all government assets under the ‘Uttarakhand Government Assets Monitoring System.’ He instructed that all government assets be uploaded to the portal within the next two months. He also mandated that geofencing accompany the mapping of each asset.

He stated that timely alerts should be generated regarding encroachments on government land so that the concerned department can take immediate action. Departmental Secretaries were directed to monitor the mapping and uploading of assets on a weekly basis.

Continuous action against single-use plastic

The Chief Secretary instructed District Magistrates to run continuous campaigns to discourage the use of single-use plastic. He emphasized that action should not be limited to campaigns alone but should also involve regular monitoring. The concerned department was directed to quickly draft and implement a policy for the effective control of single-use plastic.

Timely pension and gratuity for retired employees

Pending cases regarding the pensions and gratuities of retired teachers and employees were also reviewed during the meeting. The Chief Secretary directed the development of a mechanism ensuring that pension payments commence immediately after retirement and that gratuity is paid on time. Instructions were issued to organize special camps to resolve pending pension cases within the Primary and Secondary Education Departments. Directives were also given to establish an effective grievance redressal mechanism to address pension-related issues in large departments.

The Chief Secretary called for simplifying the process regarding medical reimbursement for retired employees. He directed that arrangements be made to have medical bills approved through the concerned Drawing and Disbursing Officer (DDO) of the district where the employee resides after retirement.

Principal Secretaries RK Sudhanshu and L. Fanai; Secretaries Shailesh Bagauli, Nitesh Kumar Jha, Chandresh Kumar Yadav, Ravinath Raman, Dr. R. Rajesh Kumar, Vinay Shankar Pandey, Vinod Kumar Suman, Jyoti Yadav, Ranveer Singh Chauhan, Dhiraj Singh Garbyal, and Rajendra Kumar; Garhwal Commissioner Anand Swaroop; and various District Magistrates were present at the meeting.