2026 Chief Secretaries’ Meet to focus on mining, infra & AI in govt; only 224 of 422 action points completed since 2022

The 6th National Conference of Chief Secretaries, scheduled to be held by end of the year, will focus on mining, linear infrastructure and AI/data-backed governance, besides accelerating the pace of reforms across 422 action points, with internal assessments showing that the current completion rate stands at 53%.

Of the 422 action points identified in the past five conferences held since 2022, only 224 have been completed or achieved, ET has learnt.

The remaining 38% are still under implementation. Another 7-10 action points, accounting for around 2%, are learnt to be delayed, while work has been initiated on another 7% of the action points, being closely monitored by the Centre.


Less than 25 of the 115 action points from the 5th National Conference, which focused on 'Human Capital' development, have been completed, while 30 of the 74 action points from the 4th conference have been achieved. Similarly, just 57 of the around 100 action points from the 2023 conference have met the completion target, it is gathered.

The high-level conferences, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, bring together chief secretaries of all states and serve as a major forum for national agenda-setting and drawing up policy action points and timelines across sectors. They are also key to the Centre's mega deregulation drive.

Preparations have, meanwhile, begun across states for the 6th conference, which will focus on three key themes: Linear infrastructure expansion, boost to mining, and ushering in data and technology-based governance mechanisms. States have also been asked to identify five priority goals each for 'Viksit Bharat@2047', which is an additional theme for the conference.

Several ministries will work in coordination on the themes to address a wide range of concerns, from land acquisition, right of way and environmental clearances for linear infrastructure to critical minerals in the mining sector. The data and technology-based governance focus will also look at Indian AI models and the application of AI in governance.

The 2026 conference will further deliberate on other key policy imperatives like deregulation phase 2, expansion of the piped natural gas network across states, and checking the use of fertilisers in non-agricultural areas to reduce import dependency. A special session with state chief secretaries is also learnt to be lined up on the implications of inter-state competition.