Mumbai, July 29 (IANS) In a major move to ensure transparency and maintain quality in government-funded development projects across Maharashtra’s Urban Local Bodies comprising Municipal Corporations, Municipalities, and Nagar Parishads, the state government on Wednesday decided to leverage advanced technology.
Artificial Intelligence (AI), Geo-Tagging, and GIS Mapping will now be utilised to conduct technical and social audits of public works.
The decision stems from an announcement made by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde during the Monsoon Session of the State Legislature, where he emphasised the phased implementation of technology-driven audits to enhance accountability, transparency, and quality in urban infrastructure projects.
Fulfilling that commitment, the state government has issued an official Government Resolution (GR) constituting a special study group led by the Commissioner and Director of the Directorate of Municipal Administration.
Urban local bodies frequently face allegations regarding substandard construction, poor infrastructure maintenance, and misallocation of funds in roadwork, water supply schemes, and civil projects.
With real-time tracking through Geo-Tagging and AI, authorities will now be able to monitor every execution stage directly, which is expected to significantly improve quality standards and operational transparency, the GR said.
“Under the new audit framework, modern technology and community participation will be integrated. AI tools will analyse project accuracy and evaluate the overall quality of construction. Real-time online monitoring will track physical progress to ensure projects are completed within stipulated timelines. The audit process will go beyond government officials to include local citizens, Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs), NGOs, technical experts, academic institutions, and public representatives,” the GR added.
The newly formed committee has been mandated to submit a comprehensive report to the state government within one month.
The committee has been tasked to suggest upgrades to existing technical and financial auditing frameworks, recommend actionable strategies for precise, assess the tangible impact and direct benefits of civic projects on local communities and formulate concrete measures to ensure ongoing and proposed infrastructure works meet quality benchmarks and deadlines.
Earlier, Deputy Chief Minister Shinde during the Monsoon session had told the Legislature that the deployment of AI, Geo-tagging, and GIS mapping will create an independent audit and monitoring mechanism for development projects across the state’s Urban Local Bodies.
He also said that this tech-backed oversight framework forms part of a broader drive to modernise urban administration in Maharashtra, operating alongside state initiatives such as fast-tracking major redevelopment projects, including BDD Chawls, Motilal Nagar, Kamathipura and standardising project tracking across the Urban Development Department (UDD) to ensure accountability in public spending.
–IANS
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