New Delhi: Emphasising the growing role of technology in governance, Narendra Modi has asked state Chief Secretaries to create state-level platforms modelled on the Centre’s PRAGATI system to monitor infrastructure projects and welfare schemes, sources said.
The Prime Minister was addressing the fifth two-day Chief Secretaries’ Conference, which concluded in the national capital on Sunday. He chaired the deliberations over both Saturday and Sunday.
Focus on Technology, Data, and Deregulation
During his address, the Prime Minister is learnt to have advised Chief Secretaries to establish data strategy units within their offices to improve the use of data in policy formulation and implementation.
He also called for the creation of deregulation cells to track and accelerate reform efforts at the state level.
PRAGATI—short for Pro-Active Governance and Timely Implementation—was launched by the Union government in 2015. The digital platform integrates data analytics, geo-spatial mapping, and video conferencing to enable real-time monitoring of priority infrastructure projects by the Prime Minister’s Office, Union ministries, and state governments.
Human Capital and Manufacturing Push
In a statement issued on Sunday, the Prime Minister’s Office said the conference featured extensive discussions on “human capital for Viksit Bharat.” According to the statement, the Prime Minister said India had boarded the “reform express,” driven largely by the strength of its youth, and that the government’s focus was on empowering this key demographic.
He also said that the “Made in India” label should emerge as a global symbol of quality and competitiveness. To reduce import dependence, he urged the Union and state governments to jointly identify 100 products for domestic manufacturing and asked states to prioritise the forthcoming National Manufacturing Mission.
Streamlining Governance Processes
The Prime Minister also flagged the increasing time spent by District Collectors in work-related video conferences. He suggested that Chief Secretaries streamline these engagements and limit official video conferences to two hours per week, allowing district officials to spend more time on field-level administration, a source said.
Earlier, on Saturday, the Prime Minister posted on X that he had held “insightful discussions on various issues relating to governance and reforms during the National Conference of Chief Secretaries being held in Delhi.”
Conference Agenda and Participation
Ahead of the event, the PMO had said the conference would focus on “intensive deliberations aimed at finalising a common development agenda.” It said the objective was to move beyond viewing India’s population merely as a demographic dividend and instead treat citizens as human capital, through stronger education systems, skilling initiatives, and future-ready employment generation.
The conference featured sessions on deregulation in states, technology-driven governance, and Atmanirbhar Bharat, or self-reliant India. Senior officials from the PMO, Union government ministries, and NITI Aayog participated in the discussions.
