The Maharashtra Cabinet on Tuesday approved a major restructuring exercise, increasing the number of administrative departments from 33 to 45 to speed up decision-making and reduce the workload on departments handling multiple subjects.
Thirteen government departments will be reorganised, resulting in the creation of 12 new administrative departments. Several sub-divisions currently functioning under larger departments will be carved out into separate departments.
The government said the restructuring would not involve creating new posts. Instead, work currently handled by large departments will be redistributed to enable departments to function more efficiently and process decisions faster.
The General Administration Department had moved a proposal to this effect.
The state government said the restructuring was intended to improve administrative efficiency by allowing departments to focus on a narrower set of subjects rather than handling multiple sectors under a single administrative setup.
Officials said the restructuring was part of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s push to improve administrative efficiency under the state’s ease of doing business and ease of living agenda.
Officials said several departments currently have two or three sub-divisions functioning under a single administrative establishment. While separate secretaries handle many of these subjects, staffing and administrative controls remain concentrated under a single department, creating difficulties in manpower allocation and coordination.
The new departments
According to the Cabinet decision, the Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Department will be split into the Agriculture and Animal Husbandry departments. The Cooperation, Marketing and Textiles Department will be divided into three departments—Cooperation, Marketing, and Textiles. A separate Protocol Department will be carved out of the General Administration Department, while the Home Department will be split to create a separate Transport Department.
The Industries, Energy, Labour and Mining Department will be divided into Industries and Mining, Energy, and Labour departments. The Revenue and Forest Department will be split into Revenue, Relief and Rehabilitation, and Forest departments. The School Education and Sports Department will be divided into separate School Education and Sports departments, while the Tourism and Cultural Affairs Department will be split into Tourism and Cultural Affairs departments.
Other Cabinet decisions
The Cabinet approved amendments to the Maharashtra Public Universities Act, 2016, to facilitate the grant of final approval to new colleges and approvals for expansion proposals involving new faculties, courses, subjects, and divisions.
The amendment will allow approvals for new colleges, institutions, faculties, courses, subjects, and divisions for the 2026-27 academic year. The June 30, 2026, deadline prescribed under the Act for granting such permissions will continue to apply. The provision will also apply to Kavikulaguru Kalidas Sanskrit University, Ramtek.
The Cabinet also approved amendments to the Maharashtra Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, to bring it in line with the provisions of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. The decision includes approval for amendments to the Maharashtra Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2026. The changes follow amendments approved by the GST Council and incorporated into the Central GST Act, 2017.
The Cabinet further approved issuing an ordinance and amendments to the Maharashtra Industrial Development Act, 1961, to increase the borrowing powers of the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC).
The government said the move was necessary to help MIDC raise additional funds for land acquisition and infrastructure development. It noted that the state has already approved a Rs 6,000-crore HUDCO loan for land acquisition for the proposed Purandar airport project and that large-scale land acquisition is underway for industrial areas, special economic zones and infrastructure projects across Maharashtra.
The official said MIDC would require additional financial resources to compensate landowners and acquire land for industrial areas, special economic zones and infrastructure projects across the state.
The Maharashtra government said the restructuring was to improve administrative efficiency by allowing departments to focus on a narrower set of subjects. (Image generated using AI) 
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