Mid Day, June 06, 1999

Chief minister Narayan Rane lambasted teh administration and elected representatives of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation for their failure in attending to citizens' complaints.

He was speaking at eh release of the citizens' charter of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation - a comprehensive document brought out by PRAJA, a non-governmental organisation, to facilitate speedy solutions to civic problems.

The smile on mayor Hareshwar Patil's face disappeared when Mr Rane remarked: "The fact that the need has arisen to apprise the citizens of how to get their problems solved shows the civic administration in poor light.  Moreover, the citizens are getting the first glimpse of the charter after 125 years of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation and half a century of INdia's Independence.  This is certainly not an event to boast about."

Former municipal commissioner B.G. Deshmukh in his keynote address remarked the charter is a collective commitment for an effective administration.

"It is a two-way commitment which binds a dutiful and respnsive local authority with reponsible, law abiding citizens," he said.

Earlier, the mayor said that Brihanmumbai  Municipal Corporation receives about 25,000 letters from the citizens pertaining to various civic problems annually.  "People do not know where to forward their complaints.  The charter gives a comrehensive information about the redressal system," Mr Patil said.

Senior secretary of the municipal Mazdoor Union Digambar Sattav who represents the biggest union in the civic body, welcomed the charter and added that it could reduce the work-load on the civic employees.