Corrupt officials will not be spared, asserts Chavan

MUMBAI - The Maharastra government is waging an all-out war against corruption and no corrupt official, at any level, will be spared, Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan asserted Friday.

“We are making increased use of the Right to Information Act to bring more transparency to the administration at all levels. Any official found guilty of misusing his powers will face stringent action,” Chavan assured renowned social worker and anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare, who called on him to raise several issues.

Hazare’s meeting with Chavan came against the backdrop of his proposed fast-unto-death in New Delhi from March 15, protesting corruption and related issues.

Chavan said any complaints of corruption against any officer at whatever level he may be would be dealt with promptly and no efforts would be spared to book the corrupt.

He said that increased use of e-governance would be made at all levels in the administration to weed out corruption from the grassroots and ensure a smooth functioning of the administrative apparatus.

Responding to the problems of deforestation in the state raised by Hazare, Chavan said the state government has set up a committee to look into the extent of land that has been ‘deforested before and after 1980. The committee would submit its report within three months, he added.

Hazare demanded that effective steps must be taken to give more powers to local bodies, educating the people and creating greater awareness about local issues.

Responding to this, Chavan said the state government would make use of national radio service Akashwani and television broadcaster Doordarshan to publicise the rights and responsibilities of the local governing bodies, schedules of village meetings, records of earlier meetings, presence of the local elected leaders, and other relevant information.