Shillong: Union Minister of State Jitendra Singh opened a two-day national conference on administrative and e-governance reforms in Shillong on Monday. The event, hosted by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances and the Meghalaya government, focuses on shifting toward technology-driven public services. Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma and Chief Secretary Shakil P. Ahammed attended the kickoff.
Singh highlighted a decade of change. The government has scrapped nearly 2,000 obsolete rules. It now prioritizes citizen-centric policies and transparency. Future governance must lean on Artificial Intelligence, cybersecurity, and digital public infrastructure to meet Viksit Bharat 2047 goals. He challenged officials to adopt modern tools, stating, "Technology is advancing rapidly, but our thinking must evolve at the same pace."
Digital transformation remains central to the mission. India now processes 18 billion UPI transactions monthly. Over 56 crore Jan Dhan accounts facilitate direct benefit transfers. Additionally, the Centralised Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System handles nearly 25 lakh annual grievances. This is up from two lakh in 2014. These systems now use AI chatbots, while keeping human oversight for final decisions.
Meghalaya serves as a model for this evolution. Singh praised the New Shillong Administrative City for integrating modern digital planning. Chief Minister Sangma pointed to his own CM Connect program as proof of the state’s drive to resolve public complaints. These reforms aim to improve efficiency across all states. The ongoing national campaign for cleanliness and disposal has already generated over Rs 4,000 crore from scrap while freeing 700 lakh square feet of office space.
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