UP officials rush to clear files before polls
Senior state government officers are holding meetings to urgently clear pending files and identify issues that need the UP cabinet’s approval before the assembly election dates are announced.
Senior state government officers are holding meetings to urgently clear pending files and identify issues that need the UP cabinet’s approval before the assembly election schedule is announced and the model code of conduct comes into force.
“Some departments opened their offices on Saturday — and may do so even on Sunday — to clear the pending files and send them to higher-ups for further approval,” said a senior officer on the condition of anonymity.
A state cabinet meeting will be held on December 13, and various departments have already sent 25 to 30 proposals for its consideration. More may follow later.
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The cabinet has decided to convene a short winter session of the state legislature from December 21. The state government proposes to get a vote-on-account for the first four months of 2017-2018 to ensure availability of funds for ongoing schemes after the polls. It will also seek the cabinet’s approval to allocate additional funds for ambitious projects of CM Akhilesh Yadav, such as the Samajwadi Purvanchal Expressway.
The issue of demonetisation is likely to come up for discussion during the winter session. The opposition may use the occasion to target the state government over its ‘failures’.
The state government will showcase its development agenda to counter the Opposition’s onslaught, and may make a mention of the early completion of the chief minister’s dream projects — the Agra-Lucknow Access Controlled Expressway, Lucknow Metro and Gomti River Front — during the session.
Chief secretary Rahul Bhatnagar had reviewed the status of projects and schemes created through an investment of `100 crore and above at a meeting on Friday. Pointing out that only 25 of over 126 such projects had been wrapped up, he asked officials to draw a timeline for completing them.
The chief secretary also asked officers to issue warnings to those responsible for the delay.
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