Punjab Transparency and Accountability Commission organized a district-level training programme for all Designated Officers and Appellate Authorities of District SAS Nagar (Mohali) at the District Administrative Complex, Mohali, today. The training was conducted under the Government of India–sanctioned project “Development of the Centralized Unified Digital Services Portal and Data Repository for Pendency Management in Punjab”.
The programme was held under the chairmanship of V K Janjua, Retd. IAS, Chief Commissioner, Punjab Transparency and Accountability Commission. The training was imparted in collaboration with the DC Office, Mohali, Mahatma Gandhi State Institute of Public Administration (MGSIPA), and the Department of Good Governance and Information Technology.
Commission Chairman, Sh. V K Janjua said that it has been seen as a tendency on the part of some of the Government officials to raise objections in a piecemeal manner, thereby causing undue harassment to common citizens. Such practice has been specifically prohibited under Rule 5(2) of the Punjab Transparency and Accountability in Delivery of Public Service Rules, 2021, which clearly provides that piecemeal objections shall not be raised and that all objections, if any, must be conveyed at the first instance itself.
He said that this practice is contrary to the mandate of Section 6(1) and Section 6(2) of the Punjab Transparency and Accountability in Delivery of Public Service Act, 2018, which requires that an application, once complete in all respects, must be processed within the stipulated time or rejected with recorded reasons, and results in unnecessary delay and harassment of applicants.
The Commission shall examine such cases closely and rigorously, and where it is found that objections have been raised without sufficient or reasonable justification, the same shall be treated as failure in due discharge of statutory duties and penalty up to Rs 10,000 per case shall be imposed under Section 16(3) of the Act, after following due process.
Further, the Appellate Authority is vested with suo-motu powers under Section 9(2) of the Act, and is expected to exercise such powers in a judicious and judicial manner, in public interest, so as to ensure that notified public services are delivered within the prescribed timelines and the objectives of the Act are effectively achieved.
While addressing the officers, Sh. V. K. Janjua stated that through the Appeal Module available on the Connect Punjab website, citizens can file appeals in cases where services are not delivered within the stipulated time limits. He further informed that the Commission is in the process of developing its own website, which will enable citizens to apply for services and directly connect with the Commission for grievance redressal.
He also highlighted that the Commission, in partnership with the Department of Good Governance and Information Technology, is developing a centralized digital portal for service delivery. In the first phase, 50 services are proposed to be made available online by February 2026.
The training lead by Sh. Sandeep, Lead, Secretarial Service Centre. It focused on strengthening the capacity of officers to ensure delivery of notified services within the timelines prescribed by the Government of Punjab and to address citizen grievances on a priority basis. During the programme, the Appeal Module was formally made live, and a detailed demonstration of the module was provided to the participating officers.
The meeting-cum-training session was attended by Smt. Komal Mittal, IAS, Deputy Commissioner; Dr. Nayan, PCS, Secretary, Punjab Transparency and Accountability Commission; along with other officers from the district administration.