New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare and Rural Development, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, on Friday directed officials of both his Ministries to immediately establish a planned, time-bound and result-oriented mechanism to ensure that farmers and poor rural citizens do not have to run from pillar to post either to avail benefits of government schemes or for the redressal of grievances.

During a meeting, Union Minister Chouhan told the officials that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had clearly emphasised that ordinary citizens should not be forced into unnecessary struggles or bureaucratic delays and that the benefits of government schemes must reach them in a simple, seamless and timely manner.

Calling this the Central government’s highest priority, the Union Minister instructed all concerned departments and institutions, including Agriculture, Rural Development, Land Resources and Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), to strengthen grievance redressal systems and make them more effective, accountable and responsive.

He noted that at present, different schemes and departments operate through separate grievance portals and systems, but stressed the need for a more integrated and outcome-oriented mechanism.

To achieve this, Union Minister Chouhan directed the formation of dedicated teams of at least 10 officers each in the Agriculture and Rural Development Ministries to review complaints, public grievances, representations from elected representatives, letters from citizens and issues raised across various portals on a daily basis.

He strongly emphasised that grievance redressal should not remain limited to ‘disposal’ on paper.

Officials were instructed to verify whether beneficiaries had actually received relief and whether scheme benefits had genuinely reached the intended recipients.

The Union Minister announced that grievance redressal mechanisms would be reviewed every month.

Referring to Prime Minister Modi’s continued emphasis on reforms, Union Minister Chouhan said every division, scheme and department must identify the exact points where difficulties arise.

“Whether in the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, road schemes, agriculture programmes, horticulture, insurance, marketing or any other initiative, any process causing unnecessary inconvenience to beneficiaries must be simplified through reforms in rules, procedures and systems.”

The Union Minister stressed the need to simplify procedures and eliminate outdated and irrelevant regulations.

Questioning the necessity of excessive licensing, Union Minister Chouhan suggested that in many cases, simple registration-based systems could suffice.

He directed officials to identify within one week all provisions, complex procedures and policy bottlenecks that obstruct implementation and require reform so that swift decisions can be taken.

The meeting also focused extensively on the use of Artificial Intelligence and technology in governance.

Union Minister Chouhan said that AI, digital platforms, data sharing, data-driven decision-making, monitoring systems and inter-departmental coordination should be strengthened across Agriculture, Rural Development, Land Resources and ICAR.

He instructed officials to create a dedicated team to study technological integration and submit practical proposals.

He said that digital governance can significantly improve both transparency and efficiency, but this would require stronger coordination and data integration across departments.

Referring to the new promotion system in ICAR, the Union Minister noted that greater importance is now being given to field impact and practical work rather than merely research papers.

He described this as a major reform capable of changing institutional work culture.

Union Minister Chouhan also stressed the need for stronger coordination among Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Fisheries, Food Processing and allied sectors.

He said integrated farming, value addition, food processing and regional agricultural roadmaps require collaborative functioning among Ministries and departments.

–IANS

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