n Don’t think a lengthy petition will make you heard. In fact, longer the petition, the greater the chances of being ignored. Going straight to the point is always judicious, as you’ll be saving the official’s time and yours too.
n The art of petition writing is to complain without coming across as complaining. Avoid blaming the authorities and just stick to pointing out the details of the issue and your idea of how it could be resolved. While drawing attention to the current issue, compliment the officials for any good work they might have done in the past.
n In life, everything has a time and a place, so do petitions. One should resort to writing a petition to the higher officials, only after all other options of having a grievance redressed have been exhausted. First up, approach the local officials and apprise them about the problem, orally or in writing. Wait for a week or two for a response. If there is none, you are justified in writing a petition to the higher officials.
n If an issue involves multiple departments, the petition should be sent to all of them. This way, the possibility of the issue getting addressed quickly is higher.
n A petition is often just a beginning of the process. As government officials get tray-loads of petitions, yours may likely end up in the back burner. To prevent that possibility, do a follow-up — either a phone call or a visit — to ensure your issue is uppermost in the official’s mind.
Sathish Galley
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n A good petition is characterised by an economy of words. Attach as many photographs as possible to buttress your argument. On the Corporation website, you cannot upload photos as big as 2 MB in size; but keep it small by reducing the image size.
n Good petition writers know the value of being thankful. Whenever an issue is addressed immediately, send a letter of appreciation. Such a gesture will help you when you send in your next petition, highlighting some other problem.
C.R. Balaji
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n Do your homework before filing a petition. Wherever possible, quote from a relevant law or government order. If have gathered documents that serve as evidence, attach copies of the same.
n If possible, let you petition propose a solution for the problem. If the solution is obvious, the petitioner may refrain from explanations. If not, he has to explain how it works.
n Some petitioners make a laundry list of complaints/ requests in one petition. Not good. When two or more problems jostle for an official’s attention, he may close the door on all of them. One problem per petition is always a golden rule.
n The petition should be addressed the petition, but to the right person and mark copies to the other related department. This is one way of sensitising the issue. In most of the civic issues, multiple departments have to coordinate. Laying or digging a road, for example, requires the EB and Metro Water department, too. Many issues hit a roadblock because one department among others is not actively involved. Besides, in cases where you have to appraise the issue to the court, the petitioner can point out that he/she sounded the line department.
n When sending the petition, opt for speed or registered post or even email. Follow-ups should be via these modes than an ordinary post.
This way, there will be a record of petitions. If possible, meet the official concerned in person.
Paadam Narayanan
Paadam Narayanan
n Before filing a petition, an effort has to be made to understand the problem thoroughly, in all its dimensions. The petitioner should also have at his finger tips, measures to be taken to solve the problem. Without both of these things, a petitioner may cut a sorry figure while meeting the officials.
n Before filing a petition, one should have exhausted existing options for redressal of an issue. One of them is using toll-free numbers set up for the purpose. For instance, in Pallavapuram Municipality, residents may complain to18004251600 for any problems relating to street lamps, dumping of garbage, sewage overflow and leakage in taps. Electricity-related problems could be taken up with the Assistant Engineers in the area or reported to 1912. Make repeated calls and record the reference numbers for filing a petition.
n Most importantly, the petitioner should know that he can demand that his petition be acknowledged. As per a government order passed in 2006, any public petition must be acknowledged within three days of its receipt and a proper reply — at least, an interim reply — must be given to it within two months.
n Send the petition by speed-post, so that you get an acknowledgement from the Postal Department. If you are giving the petition in person, it is always advisable to take a photocopy of it and have it signed at the dispatch section. This becomes an evidence or acknowledgement.
n Send reminders, at least twice a month. If there is no response even after several reminders, then you can file an RTI. Meanwhile, you can also make complaints at the weekly grievance redressal meeting and jamabandhi .
V. Santhanam
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n Hand over the petition in person and it is also necessary to mail a copy of the petition through India Post. It has to be sent either through speed post or registered post, because India Post issues an acknowledgement receipt for these two services. If the official concerned denies receipt of the petition, the acknowledgement receipt from India Post will serve as evidence. With these acknowledgement receipts, we can file an application under RTI Act and try to learn about he status of our petition. A soft copy of the petition should also be sent to the official concerned, via e-mail.
n The first paragraph should give a brief description of the problem that necessitated the petition.
Digression from the core subject should be avoided. Appropriate photos with good resolution should sent, along with captions and maps, wherever possible. Copies of any previous petitions that failed to evoke any response or reports carried in the print media could be attached too. Petitions should never be handwritten.
They have to be in printed form. It is better to stick to the font-style Times New Roman with a font size somewhere between 12 and 14. The petition should not exceed two A4 size sheets
S. Arumainathan
