Bhubaneswar: Additional Chief Secretary, Housing & Urban Development Department, Usha Padhee, reviewed the pendency of Online Building Plan Approval System (OBPAS) applications across Development Authorities, Municipal Corporations and other Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), and directed the concerned authorities to ensure time-bound clearance of all pending cases. She made it clear that deliberate or unjustified delays would invite strict action and accountability at every level.
During the review meeting held at Kharavel Bhawan, Smt. Padhee examined the status of pending applications, procedural bottlenecks and delays in planning-related clearances. She stressed the need to make the building plan approval process more transparent, efficient and citizen-friendly through simplified procedures, effective monitoring and timely disposal of applications.
She directed the concerned authorities to undertake a data-driven assessment of pending applications, identify authority-wise and ULB-wise delays and take immediate steps for their early disposal. Emphasising the importance of accountability, she called for strengthening digital file tracking and introducing an effective escalation mechanism, including escalation of files pending beyond seven days to higher authorities, wherever necessary. She also stressed that responsibility must be fixed at every level and appropriate action taken against deliberate negligence and avoidable delays.
The ACS further directed that the SUJOG platform be strengthened with enhanced monitoring and accountability mechanisms to ensure transparent processing and effective tracking of applications. She emphasised the need to avoid repetitive and unnecessary queries and ensure that applicants receive clear information about approval requirements, procedures and timelines.
Emphasising citizen-friendly service delivery, Smt. Padhee called for simplifying guidance documents and making them widely accessible through digital platforms, explanatory videos and other communication formats. She also encouraged the utilisation of technical expertise available in government engineering colleges and polytechnics to strengthen planning support and improve the approval process.
Reiterating that technology-driven governance must deliver tangible benefits to citizens, Smt. Padhee urged the SUJOG team and all concerned authorities to take ownership of resolving systemic issues and ensure a hassle-free, transparent and dependable building plan approval process. Director, Town Planning, Satrughna Kar; Additional Secretary, Suvendu Kumar Sahu; Assistant Town Planners and members of the SUJOG team, among others, attended the meeting.
