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| Mamata's lightning solutions to grievances, why can't media savvy Omar Abdullah do it better? | | | Early Times Report
JAMMU, Aug 1: West Bengal Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee has converted her private office into a massive grievance redressal cell where grievances of the people are redressed within hours and there is no complaint that does not get 100% attention of the Chief Minister.
Six senior officers of the government have been made in charge of the Chief Minister's grievance cell where hundreds of emails, complaints, requests are processed daily and attended to on individual basis. Mamata has won entry into the hearts and minds of the people in West Bengal through her grievances redressal cell, would Omar Abdullah listen and follow suit?
Niranjan Biswas, 45, a farmer from Andal Burdwan district, was allegedly beaten up by his elder brother. Having failed to get justice at the local police station and the office of the district superintendent of police, Biswas travelled all the way to Writers' Building in Kolkatta, hoping that the CM would solve his problems.
Whom he met was not CM but one of her six officers on special duty (OSDs) at the CMO. The officer called the SP's office to do what was necessary and Biswas returned home a happy man.
Mamata Banerjee has turned the CMO into a grievance cell. The six officers on special duty, led by joint secretary Santnau Bose, IAS, attend to thousands of letters every day, and meet scores of visitors. The number of letters with grievances has risen manifold. Mamata has set up a website she can be contacted.
On an average, Mamata's grievance cell receives 2000 letters daily, all of which are attended to and replied.
J&K Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah also has a grievance cell of sorts. Officers are put on duty to attend to the grievances put up to the chief minister by people who travel hundreds of miles to reach the CM's office.
Undoubtedly, Omar has been lending a patient ear to the people who call on him during the public Darbars. But, the sanctity of the grievance cell in J&K ends there. No follow up action is taken after one has put up his grievance to the CM's grievance cell. Accepted that thousands of people call on the J&K CM with their truckloads of complaints, grievances etc, but the redressal rate is abysmally low. It would have been far better and more effective if the CM's grievance redressal cell would take up cases to set examples.
Complaints of the people against civil servants should be dealt on top priority. If the CM's office is able to fix responsibility and after fixing the responsibility, exemplary punishment should be handed down to the involved official. This does not have to happen in dozens or scores of cases where the officials have erred. It has to happen to sent down a signal. A powerful signal that the doors of the CM's grievance cell are not just cosmetically open for the common man, but that those doors are open to ensure that the casual, the corrupt, the delinquent officials are set straight.
This is being done by the West Bengal government under the able leadership of Mamata Banerjee and there is no reason Omar Abdullah who is so media savvy should not be able to do it better. Once the Chief Minister takes up the issue on top priority, things would automatically straighten up for him. After a powerful, accountable system is put in place, Omar Abdullah would have all the time in the World to attend to other emergetic affairs of the state. He has to, like a good school teacher ensure that children do not gossip or loiter during the school hours. If the officials work honestly and with loyalty to the Chief Minister and dedication to the cause of the poor citizens of the state, there is no reason why Omar Abdullah cannot improve on what Mamata Banerjee is doing in West Bengal. The problem is very simple, whether Omar Abdullah takes this as bad criticism or a constructive advice? |
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