Maharashtra Government's Major Decision: Each Department Can Appoint Only 2 IT Consultants

The Maharashtra General Administration Department, working under the Chief Minister, has decided to halt the large-scale appointments of IT and non-IT consultants in government departments, corporations, and authorities. According to the government order, no department can appoint more than two IT consultants.

Additionally, the appointment of other consultants will also follow a specified process. The government has observed that many departments, regional offices, and corporations are employing a large number of consultants under the guise of 'consulting services.' There has been a growing trend of appointing retired officials to these positions. The order states that each department can only retain a maximum of two IT consultants.

Departments that currently have more than two consultants can continue until April 30, 2026, but from May 1, 2026, no department will have more than two IT consultants under any circumstances. Prior approval from the Directorate of Information Technology will now be mandatory for the appointment of any type of consultant. The responsibility for ensuring compliance with these rules will lie with the heads of departments and office heads, although these rules will not apply to the Chief Minister's office, Deputy Chief Minister's office, Chief Secretary's office, IT department, and the Directorate of Information Technology.

This decision by the government follows a statement by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, in which he emphasized that all departments should work with transparency, timeliness, and trust, so that people can easily benefit from the schemes and the goal of a developed Maharashtra can be achieved. He made these remarks during an event organized under the 150-day e-governance reform program, where outstanding officials and employees were also honored.

Chief Minister Fadnavis has directed the IT department to implement the 'One State, One Portal' scheme, aimed at eliminating the hassles caused by multiple government websites and providing all services on a single platform. He stated that making government services accessible to the public should be the top priority.