Rise from your seats when MLAs or MPs visit your office, listen to them attentively, and use polite language during phone calls to them -- these are some of the new codes of conduct which the Maharashtra government has issued for state officials.
In a detailed Government Resolution (GR) issued on Thursday (November 20), the state government has issue comprehensive guidelines mandating all state departments, semi-government offices, and government-controlled bodies to treat MLAs and MPs with utmost respect and courtesy. This initiative aims to enhance good governance, transparency, and administrative efficiency across the state.
The GR issued by the General Administration Department states that officers at every level, from the Mantralaya to district and taluka offices, must extend full courtesy to public representatives. To sum it up, officials falling under the ambit of the Administrative Departments as well as other Departments, District Heads, Station Heads, Government Offices, Executive Offices, Institutions, Boards, Corporations, Government Agencies and similar institutions shall follow the new set of codes of conduct.
This new GR brings together several older circulars and updates them with clearer, firmer instructions.
What does the GR read?
The issue was under the government's consideration from the perspective of good governance and as part of the process re-engineering initiative.
Its objective is to create a coherent and efficient system. It aims to ensure respectful treatment of public representatives, prompt and effective communication of their documents, their active participation in the governance process, to create effective coordination of information and transparency and to make communication with public representatives more convenient, consistent and effective, and to make the governance more coherent, responsive and trustworthy.
Any official who ignores these instructions will face action under service rules, including provisions related to delay in duties, the GR said. Giving due respect to elected representatives, responding to their concerns on time and ensuring smooth communication are important parts of making administration more reliable and accountable, it added.
To put it simple, the guidelines have been bifurcated into some categories which are as follows:
1. Respect and Courtesy:
- When an MLA /MP visits the premises, the concerned officers/employees shall treat them with courtesy and respect, listen to them carefully, and provide immediate assistance as may be necessary.
- When a Member of the Legislative Assembly/Member of Parliament visits the premises and leaves at the end of the visit, the officers shall greet them with a standing ovation.
- Always maintain polite language and courtesy while communicating through telephone/phone.
2. Government Programmes and Invitation:
- Government and semi-government bodies must invite local legislators to important district-level programmes, such as inaugurations or bhumi pujans. Their names must be correctly printed in invitations and seating arrangements must be done as per official order of precedence.
3. Reserved Timings:
- Department heads must reserve two hours on the first and third Thursdays of every month specifically for meetings with MLAs, MPs, and local citizens, although urgent matters can be addressed outside these designated times.
- The government advises avoiding major local-level programmes during legislative sessions unless unavoidable, to optimise attention on parliamentary work.
4. Events/programmes during Assembly session:
- Important local events should not be organised while the legislative assembly is in session. If a programme is unavoidable, it must be scheduled on a day when the House is not sitting.
5. Compliance with the recommendations of the Privileges Committee:
- Departments have been told to strictly follow directions issued by the Legislature's Privileges Committee. They must act promptly on notices received from the Legislature Secretariat and keep the committee informed. Any breach of privilege must be reported immediately, and disciplinary action should be initiated against the officer concerned, it stated.
6. Correspondence - Record, Timeline and Review:
- A separate physical/digital register should be maintained in each office for the records of letters received from the MLAs/MPs. The circular has instructed a strict timeline for replying to correspondence of public representatives within a set time and every office must maintain a physical or digital register to record letters received from MPs and MLAs.
-Officials must send a final reply within two months, except in cases relating to transfers or promotions. If a reply cannot be issued within this period, the officer must inform the department head and the concerned MP or MLA in writing, explaining the delay. Department heads have been asked to review the status of pending letters once every three months.
The GR stated that information sought by MPs and MLAs for their parliamentary or public work should be provided free of cost, except where disclosure is barred under the RTI Act. It also reminds departments to keep all mandatory disclosures updated on their websites as required under the Act.
"Training institutes under various departments must include modules on protocol and courteous conduct towards public representatives, both at the induction level and during in-service training," the GR underlined.