Gudalur residents who don’t get access to essential services at the office of the Revenue Divisional Officer (RDO) in Gudalur will be compensated monetarily, if their applications are not dealt with by officials within a stipulated time-frame. This initiative is being implemented as part of an effort to weed out corruption and ensure transparency.
Revenue Divisional Officer, Gudalur taluk, K V Rajkumar, said that the initiative would apply only to his own office in Gudalur, with plans to extend it to the taluk office next month.
“We have put up a notice board with the list of five services, including registrations of births and deaths, and issuance of community certificates to Scheduled Tribes, and have stipulated the time-frame within which each service would be completed,” said Mr. Rajkumar.
“The principle of the initiative is based loosely on The Citizen’s Charter and Grievance Redressal Bill of 2011, with the aim being to ensure that the public get access to quick and efficient delivery mechanism of public services, while eliminating the chances for corruption,” said the RDO, who unveiled the plans during a ceremony to mark anti-corruption vigilance awareness week in Gudalur.
If staff at the RDO office fail to deliver the promised services within the stipulated time-frame, a self-imposed penalty will be paid to the applicant, ranging from Rs. 100 to Rs. 500, which the RDO himself will pay.
“This is to ensure that there is accountability, while in the case of rejection of a proposal to the applicant, the staff will also have to provide in writing, the reasons for the rejection of an approval,” said Mr. Rajkumar, who said that applicants could also file an appeal in case they feel that the rejection of an approval was unwarranted.
As the initiative is being implemented through an executive order, it will be only applicable in the office of the Gudalur RDO. “We are trying out this system and hope it will improve efficiency, prevent corruption, ensure transparency, and most of all, save time for people coming here to avail of government services,” said the RDO, who added that the stipulated time-frame for services will be relaxed during times of emergencies, and also during elections.
