South Delhi residents to soon get integrated grievance redressal cell

The cell will function as a call centre and be manned by professional data entry operators, in order to expedite the process of redressal.

The South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) will start a centralised grievance redressal cell in the next two months, to speed up the process of addressing the complaints of residents.

A person can view the complete status of his complaint by online using his token number or calling the call centre. (Ht Photo)

The cell will function as a call centre and be manned by professional data entry operators, in order to expedite the process of redressal. The civic body will also launch a toll-free number for the convenience of the residents. It will accept all kinds of complaints related to the civic agency, such as sanitation, health, streetlights, road and parks.

“As soon as a complaint is received on this toll-free number, it will be automatically be sent to the concerned official/department, and the complainant will be issued a token. If the complaints are resolved at that level, then it will be closed and a confirmation sent to the complainant by text message,” a senior SDMC official said.

If not, then it will be forwarded to the department’s nodal officer. “He can question the concerned official about the reason for the delay, and issue necessary instructions. We are aiming to sort out regular complaints within 24 hours and the others between 48 and 72 hours,” the official said.

A person can view the complete status of his complaint by online using his token number or calling the call centre.

The system will be monitored by senior officials to ensure that residents actually benefit from the initiative. It will be the responsibility of the call centre supervisor to coordinate with officials and prepare a daily report on the number of follow ups done.

As of now, 1,000 complaints are received by the department everyday, from various sources, including the offices of the President, the Prime Minister and the chief minister. Although they are sent to the concerned departments immediately, 70 % of the issues wasn’t resolved for a long time due to a lack of co-ordination. “We do have sufficient staff, but lack of technology results in delaying the issue,” the official said.

“I reviewed the progress made on this system, recently,” SDMC mayor Shyam Sharma said.

“The IT department is working closely with the private concessionaire to understand the functioning of the system. The new system will help the corporation minimise the grievances and improve the functioning of the various departments,” Sharma added.

Meanwhile, residents are still doubtful about the effectiveness of the new system. They said the situation would not improve unless the officials are dedicated.

“The corporation is receiving complaints online at the moment. But it is automatically shown as ‘resolved’ after a few days, even when it is not,” said Pankaj Aggarwal, a resident of Safdarjung Enclave.