Maharashtra: Revenue Dept Directs District Collectors To Limit Meetings Outside Headquarters, Prioritise Virtual Attendance

Mumbai: Thanks to a clear directive from the state revenue department, now calling district collectors for meetings at Mantralaya or locations outside their district headquarters will no longer be as simple as that.

The decision, issued by Additional Chief Secretary (Revenue) Rajesh Kumar, follows concerns that such meetings were disrupting the collectors' routine work, particularly the 100-day program initiated by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

District collectors, as heads of district administration, coordinate with various government departments to implement and monitor schemes and programmes. They are responsible for implementing and monitoring the government schemes and programmes of almost all departments and discharge their duties as the head of the police administration, being the district magistrate (DM).

Although the responsibilities are crucial, the meetings – albeit with a virtual or physical presence, affect their routine job, putting pressure on the strenuous job, feels the revenue department.

From now onwards, if any department or a minister – except the Chief Minister or Deputy Chief Minister or the Chief Secretary – expects the presence of the district collector for a meeting, it should be scheduled only on Wednesdays or Thursdays, preferably with their virtual presence. If the meeting is related to a subject other than the revenue department, written prior permission of the revenue department has been made mandatory.

The state departments should also avoid asking the district collectors to attend meetings at Mantralaya or the offices of the divisional commissioners without prior permission, the order says which has been issued with the concurrence of the CM.