Undertake Field Visits 10 Days A Month, Revanth Reddy Tells Collectors
Have lunch with mid-day meal students once a week
Hyderabad: Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy on Tuesday issued strict instructions to district collectors to undertake field visits for at least 10 days every month and have lunch with students in government schools once a week, and made it clear that their annual performance reports and promotions would be linked to their work at the grassroots level.
Addressing district collectors at a conference at the Secretariat, the Chief Minister said their position gained meaning only when they render service that benefits the people. He stressed that collectors would continue in their roles only if they functioned efficiently on the field.
Without touring villages or interacting with people, he said, officers would never truly understand public grievances. He directed collectors to spend a minimum of 10 days every month in field inspections and stated that officials are the “eyes and ears” of the government. Collectors, he added, must act as a bridge between the government and the people.
The Chief Minister instructed that public representatives should be made partners in the “Praja Palana–Pragati Pranalika” programme to be conducted from March 6 to June 12. He directed that details of welfare schemes, including expenditure incurred and the list of beneficiaries village-wise, should be read out in gram sabhas. The government’s welfare initiatives must be effectively taken to the people, he said.
Speaking on the education sector, Revanth Reddy noted that there were 26,000 government schools in the state and directed that one official be made responsible for monitoring the mid-day meal programme in each school. The designated officer must dine along with the students at the school, he said, adding that collectors themselves should have lunch at a government school at least once a week. He warned that the government would not tolerate negligence towards schools and called for strict measures to prevent recurrence of food poisoning incidents.
The Chief Minister also announced plans to establish Telangana Public Schools in 100 Assembly constituencies, with one mandal centre in each constituency hosting a school offering education from nursery to Class XII. These schools would be developed on the lines of the Arutla model with all necessary facilities. He asked collectors to submit a comprehensive report to facilitate necessary action.
Stating that the government was spending heavily on healthcare, Revanth Reddy said there are plans to integrate all government hospitals with medical colleges in future to improve medical services for the poor. He reiterated that providing better healthcare to underprivileged sections remains the government’s primary objective.
On administration and law enforcement, the Chief Minister directed collectors to remain vigilant against outsourcing agencies that create bogus employment records and warned of stringent action against such agencies. He said it is the responsibility of collectors to recover paddy from millers where necessary and to act firmly against those indulging in malpractice. He further warned that if strict action is not taken against sand mafia and illegal mining, the concerned Collector and Superintendent of Police would be suspended on the spot.
Revanth Reddy cautioned that the government would closely monitor the performance of all collectors. Good work would be appreciated, he said, but annual performance reports would form the basis for assessing their efficiency and determining promotions. He announced that another review meeting on collectors’ performance would be held in June.
