BHUBANESWAR: Chief secretary Anu Garg on Thursday asked secretaries of different departments to speed up budget spending for 2025-26 before the financial year comes to an end.
Presiding over the all secretaries’ meeting, the chief secretary also discussed implementation of new projects announced by the government in the 2026-27 annual budget, and asked them to maintain the timeline.
The chief secretary reviewed expenditure of funds by different departments. Official sources said expenditure has increased by 9.3 per cent by February-end compared to the same period in 2024-25 financial year.
While the capital expenditure has increased by 14 per cent, the Agriculture department has seen a 13 per cent increase in utilisation. Fisheries and Animal Resources Development department and Cooperation department saw a rise in utilisation of funds by 39 per cent and 56 per cent respectively.
Besides, the chief secretary also asked the officials to ensure that the state’s revenue collection meets the budgeted target. A presentation was made at the meeting on collaboration between Sarvam AI and the state government. During the presentation, Sarvam AI showcased its collaboration with the state government, highlighting ways to simplify and accelerate departmental tasks using AI.
Sarvam AI has partnered with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and is a member of the India AI Council. The platform will offer multilingual voice-based assistance, real-time data analytics and automated graphics for government departments.
It will also provide advisory services to farmers, subsidy awareness, and resolve public grievances, making governance more efficient and people-centric.