*Haryana tightens monitoring of CM meeting decisions; departments told to give evidence-based action reports*

Chandigarh, September 9: The Haryana Government has put in place a detailed monitoring system for decisions taken at meetings chaired by the Chief Minister, requiring departments to fix responsibility and deadlines for every actionable direction and back claims of compliance with documentary evidence.

Under a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) issued by the Chief Secretary Sh. Anurag Rastogi, all departments have been told to avoid vague compliance remarks such as “action is being taken” and instead spell out what has actually been done on each decision.

The directions have been circulated to all administrative secretaries, heads of departments, managing directors and chief administrators of boards, corporations and public sector undertakings, deputy commissioners, sub-divisional officers (civil) and registrars of state universities. The order says decisions taken at the Chief Minister's meetings on administrative, developmental, welfare, law and order, infrastructure and other important matters require timely and result-oriented implementation.

Each decision will now have to be converted into a separate action point, clearly answering five questions — what is to be done, who will do it, by when, what outcome is expected and what will constitute proof of completion.

Expressions such as “take necessary action”, “take immediate action” and “look into it” should, as far as possible, be replaced by specific and measurable directions. Where more than one department is involved, the lead department or agency and the role of other departments must also be identified.

The draft Minutes of Meeting (MoM) will have to be prepared within three working days of the conclusion of a meeting. Once approved at the competent level, the minutes will be circulated to the departments and officers concerned.

No oral alteration will be permitted in an approved MoM. Any factual correction or amendment will require a separate corrigendum or amendment with the approval of the competent authority.

Departments will also have to come better prepared for CM meetings. As far as possible, a background or briefing note should be made available at least three working days before the scheduled meeting. It should include the current position, previous decisions and action taken, progress achieved, major bottlenecks, financial or administrative position, approvals required and proposed timelines and targets.

The SOP makes the Action Taken Report (ATR) an evidence-based compliance document rather than a formal report.

The status of each action point must be classified as Completed, In Progress, Overdue, Not Started, or Not Feasible/Issue Requiring Decision.

For completed decisions, departments will have to provide supporting material such as orders, notifications, approvals, progress reports, photographs, portal reports, letters, statistical data or other relevant documents. For partially completed or pending work, they must specify action already taken, work remaining, reasons for delay, current status, revised or proposed completion date and the officer concerned.

*First ATR within one month*

The first ATR will have to be submitted within one month of circulation of the approved MoM, unless a shorter deadline has been prescribed for a particular action point.

For action points not completed within the stipulated period, an updated ATR must be submitted in the first week of every month until the work is completed. Where compliance cannot reasonably be achieved within a month, the department must specify milestone-based timelines in its initial report.

*Repeated delay can reach Chief Secretary*

The SOP also provides an escalation mechanism for missed deadlines. The administrative secretary or head of department will review the reasons if an action point is not implemented within the prescribed period.

Where delay is attributable to another department or agency, it will have to be specifically recorded in the ATR and taken up at the appropriate level. Matters facing persistent delays or requiring policy, financial or administrative decisions can be escalated for a decision at a higher level.

Repeated failure to adhere to prescribed timelines may be brought to the notice of Haryana Chief Secretary Anurag Rastogi for review.

*CM Meeting Monitoring Portal to track decisions*

The CM Meeting Monitoring Portal will serve as the central monitoring mechanism for decisions and directions issued at meetings chaired by the Chief Minister.

Action points will have to be entered or uploaded on the portal within two working days after approval of the MoM. The portal record will include the department concerned, responsible officer, deadline, target or milestone, current status, ATR, supporting evidence and reasons for delay.

Before marking an action point as “Completed”, the department will have to upload appropriate supporting evidence. The department concerned will be responsible for the accuracy and authenticity of information placed on the portal.

Each department has also been directed to designate a senior and responsible officer as Departmental Nodal Officer to coordinate action points, obtain ATRs from branches and officers, verify their quality and factual accuracy and ensure timely updates on the portal.

Departments have been asked to furnish details of their nodal officers by September 15, 2026.

The SOP has come into force with immediate effect and, as far as possible, will also apply to pending action points arising from earlier meetings chaired by the Chief Minister. The order says unnecessary delay or disregard of the directions will be viewed seriously.