By Nauzer Bharucha

Times of India, October 04, 1998

What should a citizen do if the garbage in front of his house has not been collected for days?  Who should one contact for a birth certificate or a hotel licence, or if one wishes to lodge a complaint about an unauthorised structure?

There are several thousand people in the city every day who have queries or grievances against public utility services like the municipal corporation, the MTNL, the LIC, BEST or the gas companies.  Many are discouraged from entering a muncipal ward office or a public sector undertaking and are often made to run around by 'sarkari babus' from one department to another.

A group of city-based residents feel that it is time citizens knew about their rights and privileges and demanded quality service from various organisations.  They have recently formed Praja, a non-governmental organisation, and formulated a Citizens' Charter which will contain detailed information about the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).  That, says Praja activist Nitai Mehta, is only the begining.  The intiative will later cover MTNL and other utilities.

The charter will contain information about the various civic departments as well as the names and telephone numbers of municipal officers who can be contacted by citizens interested in lodging a complaint.  Praja has already roped in former commissioners like B.G. Deshmuk and Jamshed Kanga to assist it in its task.  The Citizens' Charter, a concept evolved in the United Kingdom to make public utilities more accountable to tax-paying citizens, was adopted by the Indian government last year.

The government directed all public sector companies, utility services and civic bodies in the country to frame the charter in order to make things simpler for the average citizen.  "The BMC had already prepared its charter, but it was too bulky.  Pooja helped us to make it more user-friendly", additional municipal commissioner Ratnakar Gaikwad says.

The Delhi Municipal Corporatin was one of the first public bodies in the country to implement the Citizens' Charter.  "We found that the charter compiled by the Delhi corporation was not done in an interesting manner.  Besides, only 5,000 copies were circulated, making it inaccessible to the general public," adds Mr Mehta.  Praja will be assisted by the Dignity Foundation which is supplementing the BMC's cleanliness compaign.

"A complaint lodged by a resident will be passed on to the chief dignitarian of the locality who, in turn, will pass it on to the local ward officer,"  Mr Mehta says.  "Our intention is to pressurise the system to perform and deliver the goods to tax-paying citizens."  Former additional municpal commissioner B.M. Ambhaikar said the rights of citizens ae already provided for in the BMC Act.  "In simple words, the duties of the mun8icipal corporation are the rights of the citizens.  People can compel the BMC to discharge its duty.  After all, enlightended public opinion is the foundation of democratic working,"  he observes.

Mr Ambhaikar feels that it is the officers lower down the ladder who create problems for the common citizen.  "They get away with it because their arbitrary actions are not monitored by their superiors," he adds.

Mumbai Grahak Panchayat member Shirish Deshpande, welcoming the charter, says it will establish accountability among he public utilities.  "The LIC already has one for its customers," he says.  Praja plans to circulate 13 lakh copies of the Charter to the people of Mumbai through the media next month.