Inside The Secretariat: Digital Gujarat, Recruitment Drive, & Land Policy

GPSC Internal Vacancies

At present, the Gujarat Public Service Commission (GPSC) has been functioning with a Chairperson and only a single member, instead of seven members. According to the Gujarat Administrative Reforms Commission report, two-stage examinations should be completed within six months, and three-stage examinations within 10 to 12 months. In reality, however, more than 700 days have passed since the issuance of advertisements, yet the recruitment process remains incomplete. What makes the situation more serious is that, despite an acute shortage of doctors in the state, interviews of more than 7,600 Medical Officers are still pending. Aspirants preparing for government jobs say that to maintain the trust of young men and women, the government must immediately fill the vacant posts in the commission.

Digital Gujarat 2.0 Rollout

To make citizen services in the State simpler, faster, and more transparent, a special Working Committee has been constituted under Digital Gujarat 2.0 for the implementation of Government Process Re-engineering (GPR) and Business Process Re-engineering (BPR) workshops. The Department of Science and Technology (DST) stated that the Working Committee will conduct an “As-Is” study of high-transaction services across various departments, identify bottlenecks in the existing processes, and design “To-Be” workflows aimed at digital-by-default, paperless, and faceless service delivery. The Committee will also organise technical workshops and prepare detailed reports, government resolutions, and technical specifications, which will be submitted to the State-level Committee. The Additional or Principal Secretary of the DST will serve as the Chairman of the Working Committee. Directors, Additional/Joint Secretaries, Deputy Secretaries, Heads of Departments, and the Under Secretary of GARS will be members, while the Digital Gujarat Team Leader from DST will act as the Member Secretary.

Land Policy Reset

In line with the Centre’s directive to accord greater priority to industry, the State government is preparing to introduce wide-ranging administrative reforms by amending its land policy. The move is aimed at facilitating industrial growth, particularly for industrial units and the MSME sector. As part of the proposed changes, the state plans to simplify the process of obtaining licences and No-Objection Certificates (NOCs) from municipalities, the police, and other departments for land allotment. The objective is to bring greater ease in rules, procedures, and administrative approvals to improve the Ease of Doing Business ecosystem. Various departments have been instructed to ensure that land in industrial estates is used for its intended purpose and that unit operators do not face unnecessary hurdles in acquiring land. In addition, changes to the existing industrial land allotment policy are being considered on a priority basis. The proposed reforms are not limited to the industry alone. Sectors such as education, energy, roads and buildings, water supply, employment, revenue, urban development, and mining are also being brought into focus as part of the broader policy revamp.

Fresh Recruitment Drive

The Gujarat government has initiated a recruitment process to fill vacancies arising from retirements and promotions across various departments. The Gujarat Subordinate Service Selection Board has invited applications for a total of 5,370 posts, as per the recruitment calendar finalised by the government. This includes 2,365 posts in Group A and 3,005 posts in Group B. The recruitment covers cadres such as Junior Clerk, Clerk, Senior Clerk, Social Welfare Inspector, Head Clerk, and Office Superintendent. The application process has been made online, with February 20 set as the last date for submission. It is noteworthy that the state government has released a recruitment calendar for the period 2023 to 2033, outlining plans to recruit two lakh employees over the next ten years. Of these, the highest number—94,353 posts—will be filled in the Education Department, followed by 43,389 posts in the Home Department and 15,513 posts in the Panchayat sector.

Connecting The Dots

The Gujarat Police Department is being given a new orientation with greater emphasis on citizen safety and grievance redressal. To ensure faster resolution of public representations, the government has approved the creation of a Public Relations Unit, which will serve as a direct interface between citizens and the government. The responsibility of this unit has been entrusted to an officer of the rank of Joint Secretary from the Home Department. Meanwhile, to ensure proper handling of applications and complaints received at police stations, senior police officials—including DIGs, IGs, and Additional DGPs—will be required to regularly visit police stations and interact directly with complainants. Moreover, the concerned officers will be mandated to spend a minimum of two days annually visiting the police stations assigned to them. It has also been decided that if any application or complaint remains unresolved, clear accountability will be fixed on the responsible officers.

More Money, Less Clarity

Major changes have been initiated across the 224 Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMCs) under Gujarat’s Cooperation Department. As part of this push, the grant provided to each market committee for infrastructure development—such as market yard facilities, warehouses, auction sheds, roads, and other amenities—has been doubled from ₹5 crore to ₹10 crore. The decision was taken at a recent high-level meeting of senior officials from the Agriculture Department. However, the long-pending issue of granting APMC employees the status and pay benefits of government employees remains unresolved, with no concrete discussion or settlement so far. Officials have assured that the matter will be taken up in the Cabinet meeting, especially as APMC employees in most other states—except Gujarat and Maharashtra—are treated as government employees with defined pay scales. It is also noteworthy that the Gujarat State Controlled Market Federation had earlier demanded a grant of ₹15 crore from the government for APMC development works.

Proactive Action!

At a high-level state meeting aimed at addressing the everyday hardships faced by citizens in Gujarat’s major cities, Municipal Commissioners have been instructed to take swift action on issues without waiting for public complaints. The directive was issued at a meeting chaired at the Chief Minister’s level, with the backdrop of upcoming local self-government and municipal corporation elections in the state. Officials have been warned that in cases where citizens are forced to make repeated rounds of government offices, or where complaints are filed but no action is taken, disciplinary proceedings may be initiated against the responsible officers. Similar instructions had earlier been issued to District Collectors as well. Government representatives have repeatedly acknowledged that people’s work at district administrative offices often does not get done easily or without paying money. In this context, the government currently appears to be taking the issue seriously and pushing for visible administrative accountability.

Power Delegation

The Gujarat government has increased the financial and technical powers delegated to officers of the Roads and Buildings Department under the Gujarat Public Works Rules. The move comes in view of the steep rise in the cost of materials, labour, and transportation in the market since the earlier delegation of powers. Considering the changed economic conditions, the government has decided to enhance the limits of authority so that technical officers can grant approvals more efficiently. As per the revised delegation, for administrative approvals related to roads, buildings, residential housing, irrigation, and water supply works, the Chief Engineer has been empowered up to ₹3 crore. The Superintending Engineer (Civil) has been given powers up to ₹60 lakh, the Superintending Engineer (Electrical-Mechanical) up to ₹45 lakh, while the Secretary has been granted full powers. Similarly, for works related to air-conditioning, lifts, and coolers, engineers of various cadres have been entrusted with financial powers ranging from ₹15 lakh to ₹75 lakh.