Mumbai, May 1 (IANS) Technologists, policy leaders, artists, wellness practitioners and domain experts from across the private sector, government and civil society will arrive at the Mantralaya — not to attend a meeting, but to teach, share and inspire from May 4 to 8 under the Maharashtra government’s ambitious Tech-Wari 2.0 and the ‘Journey Towards Future-Ready Governance’ initiative, officials said on Friday.

More than six thousand employees will participate in person and nine lakh employees will do so through live streaming.

Maharashtra Additional Chief Secretary of the General Administration department, V. Radha, said on Friday that Tech-Wari carries a deeper conviction that learning cannot be purely technical.

“The holistic development of our workforce also remains a key aspect. For this reason meditation, yoga, mindfulness, music and art are integrated into the programme. It explores the intersection of art, AI and governance. The programme’s design reflects a belief that a government officer who is mentally well, culturally grounded, and professionally confident will serve citizens better than one trained only in compliance. Progress, the programme insists, must remain rooted in values,” she added.

She said that every year in Maharashtra, tens of thousands of devotees walk to Pandharpur, making their collective, disciplined march towards Lord Vitthal.

“The wari pilgrimage — the determined march of the ‘warkaris’ stands as a powerful expression of shared purpose, quiet resilience, and steady consistency.”

“The Maharashtra government’s Tech Wari 2.0 mirrors this very spirit. Just as the warkaris undertake a long, purposeful journey step by step, the nine lakh employees of the state embark on their own wari — a sustained march towards a future-ready government and a skilled, adaptive and knowledge-driven bureaucracy. It was, as its architects described it, “a high-velocity onboarding of an entire government into the future,” she added.

In April 2026, as part of Maha-Sadhana Saptah — a state-wide learning drive conducted from April 2 to 8 — more than 8.8 lakh government employees completed a minimum of four hours of structured learning on the iGOT Karmayogi platform.

“The course list was carefully curated — from Artificial Intelligence and cybersecurity to law and public policy — each delivered by leading experts from their sectors. In seven days, Maharashtra’s government employees clocked a staggering 35 lakh hours of immersive learning — tracked in real time on a live dashboard and recognition badges awarded by the Capacity Building Commission,” V. Radha said.

“What is distinctive about Tech-Wari 2.0 is that the learning comes to the employee, not the other way around. Over five days at Mantralaya, expert sessions cover Digital Governance, Quantum Computing, Cybersecurity, Ethics in Governance among others. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis — who has made employee development a centrepiece of his governance agenda — and Chief Secretary Rajesh Aggarwal, himself a technologist, have made it a priority for the state,” the Additional Chief Secretary added.

“As the wari pilgrim walks — step by step, towards a destination that is both a place and a promise — so, too, does Maharashtra’s government workforce walk this learning journey. Tech-Wari 2.0 is not a destination. It is the next step,” V. Radha said.

–IANS

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