The Chief Minister's Office of Maharashtra announced on Monday, 25 May 2026 that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis chaired a review meeting on the Governance Process Reengineering (GPR) initiative at Sahyadri Guest House, Mumbai, directing all state departments to bring their services under the GPR framework to make government delivery simpler, faster, and more citizen-centric.

Context

The CMO's post, in Marathi, announced: 'शासकीय सेवा होणार अधिक सुलभ, वेगवान आणि लोकाभिमुख' ('Government services will become more accessible, faster, and people-oriented'). At the meeting, CM Fadnavis stated that the state government has decided to prioritise quality over quantity of services. He noted that out of 1,222 services reviewed, 723 citizen-relevant services have been finalised — with the number set to reduce further as integration progresses.

The CM directed that the restructuring of services on the 'Aaple Sarkar 2.0' portal be completed by 14 August 2026, with citizens experiencing the new system from Independence Day, 15 August 2026.

Policy Backdrop

Maharashtra launched the original Aaple Sarkar portal around 2015 to consolidate online delivery of state services, and promoted self-attestation of documents from the same year to reduce bureaucratic burden. The current GPR drive builds directly on those foundations, extending process reengineering into a more systematic, department-wide exercise.

CM Fadnavis highlighted that the earlier self-certification ('Swayampramanpatra') reform had already saved citizens time by eliminating unnecessary attestation requirements and placing accountability directly on the applicant. GPR is designed to institutionalise such gains across all departments. He also called for department heads to personally monitor process simplification, reduce procedural steps wherever possible, and accelerate service delivery timelines.

The Revenue Department was cited as a frontrunner in simplification efforts. The CM noted that transforming the Revenue Department — which has the most direct public contact — amounts to completing 40 to 50 per cent of the government's overall reform agenda.

Stakeholders and Impact

Citizens across Maharashtra stand to benefit from reduced paperwork, fewer procedural steps, and faster service turnaround on the integrated Aaple Sarkar 2.0 portal. The reform is also expected to ease workloads within the administration by standardising and streamlining internal processes.

CM Fadnavis directed special attention toward local self-government bodies, noting that while experiments are under way at the local level, a uniform and robust service-delivery system needs to be developed for urban and rural local bodies. He also asked each department to formulate a dedicated communication strategy using hyperlocal digital platforms — citing 'Public App' as an example — to ensure citizens are informed of governance improvements.

The meeting was attended by Archana Vyas, India Office Director of the Gates Foundation; Arnav Kapoor, Deputy Director (Policy, Communications and Philanthropic Partnerships) at the Gates Foundation; Gaurav Goyal, Founder and CEO of Samagra; Joy Bandekar, Group President (Strategy and Planning) at InShorts; and senior state government officials.

What's Next

The immediate deadline is 14 August 2026 for completing the restructuring of services on Aaple Sarkar 2.0, with a public rollout timed to Independence Day 2026. Subsequent review meetings are expected to track department-wise GPR targets and progress on building a unified service-delivery architecture for local bodies.

The Gates Foundation's presence at the review signals continued external technical partnership in Maharashtra's governance reform process — a model that could inform how other states approach similar e-governance consolidation drives.