Kolkata, May 13 (IANS) West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari will chair a crucial meeting at the current state secretariat in Nabanna in Kolkata-adjacent Howrah district on Wednesday to review the functioning and performance of as many as 41 state government departments.

An insider from the state secretariat said that the review meeting is expected to be a marathon one since it is intended to identify the functional lapses of these departments and suggest measures to improve.

Five representatives from each of the 41 state government departments, including the departmental secretaries, are expected to be present at the meeting later in the day.

The state secretariat insiders said that the most important agenda item in the meeting will be a discussion on the budgetary allotments for the current financial year of 2026-27 and the pattern of spending followed so far.

“From this pattern of spending, a broad outline might be charted out today about the areas where the expenditures should be expedited urgently and the areas where expenditures are wasteful and hence discarded,” the state secretariat insider said.

Secondly, state secretariat sources added that in the meeting, the departmental secretaries will make presentations before the Chief Minister about the hurdles they have faced so far in implementing various projects.

“​The meeting today is not just intended to review the functioning of the departments so far, but also intended to prepare a blueprint for future plans of the newly formed state government for the next six months. A ‘mid-term’ blueprint of what the new government wants to achieve in the next two years will also be prepared today,” the state secretariat insider said.

The new state government has taken special care to put in place an ideal work culture in the departments. After the first cabinet meeting on May 11, strict guidelines were issued for government employees, which made it clear that all state government employees should report to work by 10:15 a.m. and not leave the office before 5:15 p.m.

At the same time, state government employees have also been asked not to remain outside their places of work unless they are assigned any departmental duty outside the place of work.

–IANS

src/dpb