No foreign trips, carpooling, virtual meetings among C’garh govt’s latest austerity measures

Raipur: Chhattisgarh govt has ordered a fresh austerity drive across departments, restricting foreign travel at state expense, limiting convoy vehicles and pushing virtual meetings, e-office and vehicle pooling to cut public expenditure.The finance department issued the order on Saturday, saying the measures have been introduced with immediate effect to ensure “efficient management of financial resources” and discipline in govt spending. The restrictions will remain in force till September 30, 2026.Under the new guidelines, only essential vehicles will be allowed in the convoys of the chief minister, ministers and office-bearers of corporations, boards and commissions. Departments have also been instructed to minimise petrol and diesel expenses and adopt vehicle pooling for officials travelling towards the same destination.The govt has directed departments to gradually replace official vehicles with electric vehicles, linking the move to both fuel savings and environmental goals.Chhattisgarh govt has launched the austerity drive aimed at cutting public expenditure, curbing “avoidable” spending and tightening financial discipline across departments, officials said.Positioning the move as an attempt to ensure “efficient management of financial resources” and improve administrative accountability, the govt has asked all departments, divisional commissioners, collectors and heads of departments to strictly regulate use of public resources and avoid unnecessary expenditure.Officials said overseas visits will now be permitted only under “extremely unavoidable circumstances” and that too with prior approval from the chief minister.Finance secretary Rohit Yadav, who issued the directive, said the measures are intended not only to reduce govt expenditure but also improve efficiency and accountability in administration.The govt has simultaneously moved to cut meeting-related expenditure by encouraging virtual reviews and online conferences. Physical meetings have been advised to be restricted, as far as possible, to once a month, while routine departmental review meetings are to be conducted through video conferencing.Offices have also been directed to strictly enforce energy-saving practices. All electrical equipment, including lights, fans, air-conditioners and computers, must be switched off after office hours to prevent wastage of electricity in govt buildings.The finance department has further accelerated its push towards paperless governance. Printed files, booklets and documents used in meetings are to be replaced with digital formats such as PDFs and presentations, while all official correspondence and file movement will be routed through e-office platforms to reduce paper and stationery costs.For employee training, departments have been asked to maximise use of the iGOT Karmayogi portal instead of organising physical training programmes. Departments will also have to upload their training modules online.The move comes at a time when several state governments are increasingly leaning on digital governance and cost-rationalisation measures amid pressure to optimise public spending while maintaining capital and welfare outlays.