India, Jan. 1 -- Chhattisgarh's creation 25 years ago rested on a simple premise: A smaller state would listen better, govern closer to the ground, and respond faster to its people. As my government completes two years in office, coinciding with the state's silver jubilee, the real question is not how much has been announced, but how much confidence has been rebuilt. Guided by the Prime Minister's emphasis on transparent and accountable governance, these two years have focused on steady correction - not disruption for its own sake, but repair.

That effort necessarily began with governance itself. Chhattisgarh did not lack policies. What it needed was clarity in process and discipline in delivery. Over the past two years, more than 400 ad...