Amaravati: Follow standard operational procedure in selection of beneficiaries, village secretariats told

Amaravati: Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy directed the officials to ensure standard operational procedure (SOP) in the implementing welfare programmes to people at the village and ward secretariats by the volunteers.

Addressing a review meeting on the functioning of the village and ward secretariats at Tadepalli on Wednesday, the Chief Minister said the volunteers and the staff at the secretariats trained one month in advance about the norms for the new welfare programmes. That training made it easy for them to select beneficiaries.

He said a process has to be adopted by the secretarial staff and the volunteers in the implementation of the new welfare programmes and in the section of beneficiaries.

Officials of the departments concerned have to directly send information to the secretariats regarding the directives to be followed and the eligibility criteria and also display of details at the secretariats.

While asserting the importance of appointing officials of all departments concerned at the village and ward secretariats, the Chief Minister said they need to be present there till the Rythu Bharosa centres were established.

Jagan said that the officials should immediately respond to the requests that are made in the portal for the 541 services offered in the secretariats such as that of pensioners. The portal is not only linked to the department concerned but also to the Chief Minister's Office. Even the secretaries of the department concerned should be involved in the process.

If there is a lapse anywhere, it is the poor beneficiary who would be at loss and it amounts to the failure of the official concerned, said the Chief Minister.

He added that the volunteers should personally go to the houses of the beneficiaries of pension and ration cards to note their particulars and see that nobody is left out.

He said since each volunteer was entrusted with 50 houses, there should not be any scope for delays in implementation of any scheme. As the system was introduced to take administration to the doorsteps of the people, there should be no scope for corruption and third party verification would solve the problem, he said.

Chief secretary Nilam Sawhney and officials of the other departments concerned were among those present.