Administrative reforms commission recommends closure of low-impact schemes, staff redeployment

Bengaluru, Dec 30 (PTI) An administrative reforms commission formed in Karnataka in its final report released on Wednesday has recommended sweeping changes to streamline governance, including the closure or merger of low-impact state sector schemes, redeployment of surplus staff to frontline services and abolition of long-vacant posts.

Karnataka Administrative Reforms Commission–2 (KARC-2) has also recommended the creation of a permanent reform monitoring mechanism to ensure sustained implementation, according to a press note issued by the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) on Tuesday.

The 10th and final report, also calls for rationalisation of nearly 2,874 Heads of Account, reallocation of resources to mission-mode programmes, and tighter alignment of human resources with actual workload and service delivery needs across departments, boards and corporations.

"The Government of Karnataka constituted the KARC-2 in January 2021 with an objective of undertaking a comprehensive review of the administrative systems, service delivery mechanisms, institutional structures, and governance processes of the State Government,” the press note said.

Senior legislator and former minister R V Deshpande was appointed Chairman of KARC-2 in January 2024 with the status of a Cabinet Minister.

Under his leadership, the Commission accelerated its reform agenda through intensive departmental reviews, systematic follow-up on implementation and focused interaction with senior political and administrative executives, the CMO said.

The Commission submitted its 8th report in May 2025, its 9th in October 2025, and has now concluded its mandate with the 10th report.

The report recommends on scheme rationalisation. Based on a detailed examination of 2,874 Heads of Account using financial data for 2023–24 (Accounts), 2024–25 (Revised Estimate) and 2025–26 (Budget Estimates), the Commission found that around 1,000 heads had zero or negligible allocations or were inactive, while about 280 schemes carried allocations of less than Rs 1 crore, with a steep decline from Rs 1,336 crore in 2023–24 to Rs 105 crore in 2025–26.

“Many schemes exhibit declining utilisation, duplication with Centrally Sponsored Schemes, or disproportionate administrative overheads,” the report said.

The Commission has recommended closure, merger or consolidation of such schemes and reallocation to high-impact programmes and mission-mode interventions.

The report proposes redeployment of surplus personnel from low-workload units to frontline services, conversion of obsolete clerical posts into technical or executive roles where required, abolition of long-vacant or redundant posts, and freezing indiscriminate expansion of Group-C and Group-D cadres, alongside optimised outsourcing.

These steps are aimed at improving efficiency and reducing avoidable fiscal burden.

The Commission also underscores the implementation of recommendations. During 2024–25, sustained monitoring and coordinated follow-up resulted in 2,014 recommendations fully implemented, 186 partly implemented, 839 under active implementation, and 2,274 under examination.

“In the last two months alone, approximately 200 recommendations have been implemented,” the release noted, indicating renewed administrative focus.

Among institutional reforms, KARC-2 has proposed setting up a Reform Monitoring Unit (RMU) within the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms (DPAR-AR) to carry forward oversight beyond the Commission’s tenure, integration of recommendations into departmental action plans and performance reviews, and continued use of an online tracking portal for real-time monitoring.

Overall, the 10th report contains 355 new recommendations, taking the total across 10 reports to over 6,000, spanning 42 departments. With the submission of the final report, KARC-2 concludes its mandate.

The government, the CMO said, is committed to institutional continuity to translate these reforms into improved governance and better public service delivery across Karnataka. PTI GMS GMS ADB