Consumers will no longer have to wait endlessly or run from one office desk to another to resolve pending issues including billing disputes. The Delhi Jal Board has come out with a new scheme to address concerns in a time-bound manner.
Starting November, all Joint Directors will have to be present at special meetings that will be called for redressing the grievance of consumers. “On every Saturday of the month, barring the second Saturday, Joint Directors of different zones will have to be present at meetings where consumers with grievances can walk in and seek help. Till date the zonal revenue officers were mandated to address consumers' complaints, but we have now decided to rope in the Joint Directors so that there is less movement of files in the department and consequently less time spent in addressing them,” said D. Varma, Director Revenue, DJB.
Meetings will be held in various zones on a specific date and the schedule will be announced by the DJB. For instance on November 19, a special meeting will be held between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. in zones North East II, South II, G.K., and Central II.
“We are aiming for on-the-spot resolution of problems, for complaints that cannot be solved immediately the ZROs have been asked to stick to a five-day disposal period. Consumers can attend these special meetings with any grievance they have about bills or mutation or a new connection,” he said.
The DJB has also simplified the procedure for seeking new connections and mutation. Consumers will no longer have to submit an affidavit for the purpose; self-attested documents will be enough.
“Once our revenue management project gets ready for implementation in April 2012 there will be a major revamp of all services. Most of our service will be a click away and consumers will not have to deal with tedious processes. For now consumers can view their bills online through the Jeevan Centres, but once we implement the revenue management system project consumers will be able to receive their bills online and get SMS reminders about payment dues etc, like for the other utilities,” Mr. Varma said.
