This story is from December 28, 2016

Now, G-Mitra to redress your water grievances

| Mungara Sunil | TNN | Dec 28, 2016, 15:57 IST

HYDERABAD: In order to monitor complaints received from customers, the Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (HMWS&SB) recently launched innovative system '

GMITRA

' (Grievances Monitoring & Information Technology Related Associates) and deployed staff from all 14 operation and maintenance (O&M) divisions to manage the user's complaints.

The staff would monitor complaints and give feedback to senior water board officials. Currently , the HMWS&SB is redressing grievances related to supply disruptions, sewerage overflows and open manholes, through the Metro Customer Care (

MCC

) and sends an SMS to customers who lodge complaints after resolving the issues.In fact, the water board has also identified nearly 700 areas (hotspots) in the city from where complaints are received frequently .

The water board has also taken up various initiatives through WhatsApp,

geo-tagging

and

Jal App

to redress complaints.

“Though the board redresses complaints, we are not getting feedback from customers and the officials concerned.To monitor the complaints, we have designed G-MITRA (an IT trainer) by deputing junior officials. We are imparting training to them on giving feedback on complaints,“ HMWS&SB managing director

M Dana Kishore

told TOI. The G-MITRA staff will contact at least 15 consumers a day, either through phone or social media, and take feedback on status of their complaints and update them. The water board aims to solve all complaints within service level agreement (SLA), he added. The G-MITRA staff would also be responsible to handle complaints received through HMWS&SB's social media like Twitter, Facebook and Jal App, the official said.

“Already, the water board has begun the process in a few O&M divisions. By December-end, we will extend it to all O&M divisions in the city ,“ the water board MD said.

Swipe & pay your water bill

The HMWS&SB has decided to introduce swiping machines for collection of water bills. Electronic point of sale (PoS) or swiping machines will be kept at the cash collection counters of the water board. The move is aimed at encouraging cashless transactions . The machines will be available from December 30.

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Top Comment

Psr Swami

2905 days ago

In Hyderabad there are several houses having 1/2" connection but later multi story flats came up and still the same old 1/2" connection is continuing. If there are more than 8 flats 3/4" connection has to be taken but nobody is there to check whether the connection is upgraded to 3/4" or not. Despite complaints to the water board just none is bothering. If one can co-relate the municipal taxes of a particular door number on which flats are there and check its connection and it whose name it is there one can easily find out why the water board is losing revenue. It is better the water board on its own upgrades the connection and collect the cost in instalments along with the monthly water bill. This will facilitate both the water board and the consumers. A loan can be taken for this purpose and fix the EMI per flat complex and collect it along with the water bill. I wrote several times about the continuation of the 1/2" connection at door no.6-3-630, khairatabad, hyderabad 500 004 where there are 15 flats and the water connection is 1/2". This is there even after the flats were constructed and occupied about 25 years back. The staff of the water board is so benevolent that if they are properly looked after the manager comes and organises the connection in such a manner that the consumer gets maximum water during the limited period of releasing water. For example check the water connection of "Ram Sai Symphony apartments" on the Anandnagsr Col Main road Khairatabad which does not get even a single tanker even though there are 40 flats. This is because the manger of the water board got it done under his supervision a few years back. Whereas we buy tankers from Jan itself even though the number of flats are only 14 and the inmates are also very less.

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