The Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Department of Odisha has reaffirmed its commitment to citizen-first governance through the effective implementation of the Right to Public Service (RTPS) Act, aimed at transforming urban service delivery.
A high-level meeting on the RTPS Act was convened yesterday under the chairpersonship of Smt. Usha Padhee, Principal Secretary, Housing & Urban Development Department, at Kharavela Bhawan.
Sharing her vision, Smt. Padhee emphasized that the RTPS Act must go beyond routine service delivery.
“The Right to Public Service Act is not just an instrument of service delivery, it is a commitment to redefine governance itself. By embedding accountability, efficiency, and transparency at every level, we aim to create cities where citizens’ rights become the responsibility of the service providers,” she said.
Delivering a special address, Mr. Jagadananda, Co-founder and Mentor of the Centre for Youth and Social Development (CYSD), highlighted the Act’s transformative potential. Drawing a comparison with the Right to Information Act, he said that RTPS could be a powerful catalyst in strengthening urban governance. He stressed the importance of capacity building, system re-engineering, effective record-keeping, and citizen-centric reforms to make the initiative truly impactful.
The meeting was attended by senior officials including Dr. N. Thirumala Nayak, Vice-Chairman, BDA; Shri Arindam Dakua, Director of Municipal Administration; Shri Chanchal Rana, Commissioner, BMC; Shri Rabindra Kumar Sahoo, Additional Secretary; and Shri S. Routray, Additional Secretary, along with other departmental officers.
The deliberations concluded with a unanimous resolve to build a governance framework that places citizens at the core, ensuring timely, transparent, and accountable public services across urban Odisha.
