Inside The Secretariat: Vibrant Gujarat, Ecotourism, & NARIT AI

West Asia Crisis Casts Long Shadow On Vibrant Gujarat 

In view of the situation in West Asia, the State government has decided to merge its remaining two Vibrant Gujarat Regional Conferences (VGRC). The government had already held the first conference in Mehsana and the second in Rajkot.

The remaining conferences were scheduled to be held in Surat and Vadodara, but now the scheduled meetings in South Gujarat and Central Gujarat have been combined into a single conference, which will be held in Surat on May 1 and 2.

Along with this, it has also been decided to celebrate Gujarat Foundation Day in Surat.

Recently, Additional Chief Secretary of the Industries and Mines Department, Mamta Verma, and Industries Commissioner P. Swaroop made a presentation on the VGRC during a meeting of Secretaries. The impact of the ongoing conflict is visible on the Surat event, as so far, confirmations have been received only from Japan and Rwanda. 

Gujarat Police Launch NARIT AI To Curb Narcotics-Related Crimes 

Gujarat’s in-charge DGP K.L.N. Rao, along with Surat City Police Commissioner Anupamsinh Gehlot and Superintendent of Police, Western Railway (Vadodara), Abhay Soni, have launched an artificial intelligence (AI)–based tool, “NARIT AI” – Narcotics Analysis RAG-based Investigation Tool.

This will be used to curb narcotics-related crimes in the state, as it will assist investigating officers and agencies in handling complex narcotics cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS legal framework. It will provide real-time analysis of legal provisions, relevant laws, and investigation procedures, and also offer legal guidance specific to each case. Notably, this is the first AI-based tool of its kind being used by any state police force or law enforcement agency in India. The application has been developed by the Western Railway Police, Vadodara Division, in collaboration with a Mumbai-based AI startup.

New President Of IPS Association

Ahmedabad Police Commissioner G.S. Malik has been appointed the President of Gujarat's IPS Association.

Piyush Patel has been appointed as the Vice President, Nipurna Torawane is the Secretary, and N.N. Chaudhary is the Treasurer.

An Executive Committee has also been formed, which includes 14 members. During this selection process, police officers discussed issues related to the 8th Central Pay Commission and the circulation of baseless allegations against IPS officers on social media. It was decided that a social media handle would be launched to challenge and counter such unsubstantiated information.

Boosting Income Of Gujarat's 48 Eco-Tourism Sites

Vinod Rao, Principal Secretary of the Forest and Environment Department of Gujarat, has a new task. Recently, at the Forest Department's Chintan Shibir, it was decided that the strategy of southern States will be emulated to boost the income of the 48 eco-tourism sites in Gujarat – from ₹45 crore to ₹150 crore. 

The income of 300 such sites in Kerala is ₹3,600 crores, the income of 80 sites in Tamil Nadu is ₹1,200 crore, and the income of 35 sites in Karnataka is ₹280 crores.

The process of making a new eco-tourism policy has also begun in the state. Zones with the potential for development into eco-tourism sites have also been identified. 

Full-Time Posts Still Elusive At The Tax Commissionerate

Gujarat’s Tax Commissionerate has once again come into discussion – this time since several senior officers are still holding additional charges instead of full-time postings. Despite persistent issues such as GST evasion and input tax credit (ITC) scams, full-time officers have not yet been appointed in the Commissionerate. After Chief Commissioner of Tax Aarti Kanwar went on deputation to Delhi, the State government assigned the additional charge of the vacant post to Additional Chief Secretary (Finance) T. Natarajan.

Meanwhile, P. Bharathi has been given additional charge as Special Commissioner, although her full-time posting is as Secretary in the Department of Science and Technology. Another Additional Commissioner in the Tax Department is also functioning on an additional charge. Major changes are expected in the Department after the local body elections.