Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has directed all government departments to urgently complete internal preparations for the upcoming ‘File Adalat’, a state-wide initiative scheduled from July 1 to August 31, aimed at clearing long-pending files and ensuring swift administrative action.

The Chief Minister issued the instructions during a meeting of department secretaries, emphasising that the goal is to clear as many backlogged files as possible, particularly those that have been pending decisions for extended periods. “All department-level arrangements must be completed immediately,” he said.

To facilitate faster decision-making, Pinarayi also suggested that a meeting chaired by the Chief Secretary be convened to recommend necessary delegation of powers and policy amendments where required.

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The File Adalat will focus on three key levels: the Secretariat, heads of departments, and institutions interfacing with the public. Secretaries have been instructed to convene meetings with heads of departments and institutions to issue clear guidelines and outline department-specific action plans. They are also expected to visit departments periodically and monitor the progress of file disposal on the ground.

Each department has been asked to categorise files by priority and take proactive steps to resolve issues. Secretaries must directly supervise the proceedings and ensure that maximum files are cleared within the two-month window. Technical disposal is not enough, the core issue in each file must be resolved, the Chief Minister stressed.

The Chief Secretary has been tasked with issuing a circular to address inter-departmental delays, particularly files awaiting feedback from other departments. Files that have been held up for months or years must receive final responses within 15 days. Special attention was called to the Finance Department, which reportedly has the highest volume of such pending files. Pinarayi said joint Adalats could be organised between the Finance Department and other administrative departments, if required.

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Further, the monthly secretaries' meeting will now include a review of File Adalat progress by the Chief Secretary. All officers handling files in the Secretariat will be called to a meeting to receive final instructions, with the Chief Secretary providing oversight.

The Chief Minister also directed the IT Department to work with the Chief Secretary to develop a dedicated portal for real-time tracking of file disposal and data collection. The performance of the Adalat will be periodically reviewed by both the Council of Ministers and individual ministers.

Once the File Adalat concludes, a separate review meeting will be held to evaluate departmental performance, the Chief Minister said. The meeting was attended by Chief Secretary Dr A Jayathilak and all department secretaries.

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