Leh, June 24: Chief Secretary of UT Ladakh, Dr. Pawan Kotwal (IAS), chaired a review meeting on “Deregulation and Compliance Reduction” at the UT Secretariat. The meeting focused on streamlining administrative procedures, enhancing ease of doing business, and reviewing ongoing reforms under the Business Reforms Action Plan (BRAP) and decriminalization of minor offences.
Administrative Secretary, Shri Bhupesh Chaudhary, presented a detailed overview of the progress made in line with Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG) guidelines. He also highlighted the updated Management Information System (MIS) portal, wherein all 23 priority areas have been assigned to respective departments. The updated data will be submitted to the Chief Secretary, who will forward it to the Task Force for final review.
A special focus was given to the decriminalization exercise which is a major part of the Deregulation & compliance reduction process.
Dr. Kotwal emphasized the importance of implementing laws effectively, stating, “A law holds value only when it’s executed in spirit and practice.” He reviewed the implementation of the Jan Vishwas Act and directed the Law Department to align relevant UT laws accordingly, maintaining the format of J&K Acts.
He also reviewed public service delivery mechanisms, including the issuance of identity certificates, Scheduled Tribe and resident certificates. He instructed the Revenue Department to make processes fully online, including Patwari signatures, and assured government support in covering digitization costs.
The meeting concluded with a call for timely implementation of the Public Services Guarantee Act (PSGA) to ensure citizen-centric governance and administrative accountability.
Key participants included Administrative Secretaries of Tourism, Agriculture, RDD/PRI & IT, PWD/PHE; Directors of Housing & Urban Development, Industries & Commerce, and Rural Development; Member Secretary LPCC; Chief Engineer, PDD; Additional Secretary, Law Department; State Informatics Officer, NIC; Assistant Commissioner (Revenue) Leh; Deputy Director, Fire & Rescue Services; Deputy Labour Commissioner; Executive Officer, Municipal Committee Leh; Assistant Architect, Housing and Urban Development; and the PMU Team from the Tourism Department.
