Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya on Tuesday asked engineers of Public Works Department (PWD) to follow the latest technique in construction of roads and adopt Chanakya Software from the coming financial year.

Asking PWD officers to upgrade their systems by the end of this fiscal, Maurya directed them to regularly monitor the laying of ‘herbal marg’ in the state.

The Deputy Chief Minister also expressed satisfaction over the work carried out by the department in laying herbal roads.

Addressing PWD chief engineers posted across the state through video conferencing on Tuesday, Maurya, while stressing on cleanliness, said that officers should ensure that the department premises were kept clean as it affected the functioning and performance of the employees.

For maintaining safety measures on all highways, Maurya asked engineers to regularly review the working of gangmen and ensure that everyone was doing the work with full honesty. He warned that stern action would be taken if any road was found dirty or in damaged condition.

Maurya also said that those gangmen, who were incapable of doing their job, be given compulsory retirement.

The Deputy Chief Minister asked the officers to ensure that proper budget of all highways and main roads was made available to the department. He said in case of any crunch, zonal chief engineers were to take necessary steps to overcome it.

He also asked the engineers to attach priority to recommendations made by Members of Parliament, MLAs and other people’s representatives and all proposals be forwarded after making them aware of the projects.

Maurya said that all proposals which came up during district planning meeting must be forwarded to him for necessary action and delay in compliance would be not tolerated. He also sought explanation from officers who failed to exhaust their budget within a given time frame. He said that all works were to be completed within time and proposals for the next year should reach his office within the stipulated time or else the officers would be punished.

Showing his displeasure over irregularities in Basti, the Deputy Chief Minister ordered legal action against officials by getting criminal case registered against them with the police. He said the government would not tolerate any financial irregularity so officers must complete their task with honesty and transparency.

He also asked the officers to take help of district magistrates in getting illegal encroachment on PWD land removed.