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BMC’s ‘bureaucratic’ reply irks citizens’ association

ByJeet Mashru
Jan 18, 2023 12:53 AM IST

Mumbai: A letter from the office of the assistant engineer (Maintenance) of L ward of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has irked the members of Chandivali Citizens’ Welfare Association (CCWA)

Mumbai: A letter from the office of the assistant engineer (Maintenance) of L ward of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has irked the members of Chandivali Citizens’ Welfare Association (CCWA).

HT Image
HT Image

The letter, which came as a response to a CCWA letter highlighting several civic issues in the area, did not even mention the name of the official.

The CCWA on December 16, 2022, met the assistant commissioner of L ward, Mahadev Shinde, highlighting various civic issues in the area. After the meeting, a letter was submitted to the ward office addressing the assistant commissioner, which mentioned eight civic issues or requests to the BMC.

Some of the pressing issues were air pollution due to illegal factories at Khairani road slums, garbage lying at various open spaces and incomplete road works among others.

After a month, when the CCWA received a response from the BMC, they were surprised that instead of addressing the issues, the L ward officials responded with the designation of the officers who will be resolving the issues. Some of these officers’ addresses were the same as the L ward office.

Mandeep Singh Makkar, founder member of the CCWA said, “We have many minor issues in the area which can be resolved at the ward level. Instead of resolving these issues, the BMC engineer is sending us a letter with the designation of officials who we should approach individually.”

“The letter neither mentions the names of the officials, nor their contact numbers. Ideally the complaint officer should have dealt with these issues and forwarded it to the officials concerned,” he said.

“The issues we are raising are small and do not require intervention of MP or MLA, but such response from the civic body is shocking,” Makkar added.

The BMC in its letter did not respond to the issue of air pollution in the area and the CCWA’s request seeking appointment to discuss these issues.

Of the six points mentioned in the letter by BMC, one was a generic response of trenching permissions, for three civic issues the letter asked the CCWA to contact three different officers of the L ward. On an issue related to parking, the BMC asked them to contact traffic police and on the issue of missing paints on zebra crossings and speed breakers, the letter mentioned that they should contact the roads department.

Nilesh Wakode, another member of the CCWA said, “Instead of resolving the issues, the BMC came back with a typical bureaucratic response asking us to go here and there. Despite intervention from our MLA, this is the kind of response we are getting from the ward, while citizens continue to face issues.”

After receiving the letter, the furious CCWA members took it to Twitter publishing the copy of the letter and tagging authorities and local leaders saying that the letter reminds them of a popular television show called ‘Office Office’.

When HT tried reaching out to the L ward assistant commissioner, the officer responded with an ‘ok’ on chat but did not reply further.

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