Wed, May 07, 2025
GARC Suggests Timetable Change And Tech Reforms for Gujarat Govt Offices
Report highlights 10 key reforms including user-friendly websites and unified service portals, while also proposing a shift in government office hours to 9:30 AM to 5:10 PM
Apr, 25, 2025 · 2 min read
The Gujarat Administrative Reforms Commission (GARC), established by the state government, has come out with its second report, putting forward around 10 practical recommendations aimed at improving how government services function. Some of the key proposals include tweaking office hours for government departments (excluding educational institutes) to 9:30 AM to 5:10 PM, encouraging the use of social media, introducing QR codes for certificate verification, and making official websites more user-friendly.
Just a month after GARC was announced, its Chairman, Dr. Hasmukh Adhia, submitted the second set of proposals to the state government. Dr. Adhia, who also serves as the Chief Advisor to the Chief Minister, emphasised that this report focuses on the broader vision of “Government at Your Doorstep.”
The second GARC recommendation report was presented to Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel by Dr. Adhia. Chief Secretary Pankaj Joshi and Member Secretary Hareet Shukla were also present during the submission. So far, the Commission has received over 2,150 suggestions from various government departments and members of the public, reflecting a strong collective interest in administrative reform.
10 key recommendations made in the second GARC report:
1. Government websites and applications should be made more user-friendly to ensure easy access for citizens.
2. The Citizen Charter should be implemented more effectively to ensure timely redressal of public grievances.
3. Government service delivery portals should be citizen-centric, enabling easy access to all government schemes from a single platform.
4. The government should develop a tech-enabled, QR-based system to verify official certificates, licenses, approvals, and other documents.
5. The "Swagat" grievance redressal platform should be integrated to allow citizens to file complaints via email, WhatsApp, phone calls, and an online portal.
6. A knowledge transfer protocol should be introduced, requiring outgoing and incoming staff to document and hand over relevant information during job transitions.
7. A Vehicle Disposal Protocol should be established for the removal of outdated vehicles used by government departments.
8. Within the next six months, the government will implement a Furniture Disposal Protocol across all public offices to manage unserviceable furniture.
9. Office hours for all government departments, excluding educational institutes, should be fixed from 9:30 AM to 5:10 PM to boost productivity through better workday management.
10. The government should develop social media handling guidelines to use official accounts for daily updates, local-level scheme promotions, success stories, infographics, and explanatory videos to better engage with the public.
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