Samvad setu to link netas with officers

Lucknow: With a growing number of complaints against govt officials for not taking calls from public representatives, a ‘Samvad Setu' initiative is being launched in the state to address this issue.A district contact and command centre will be established at the district level, which will function as a communication link between public representatives and administrative officers.
The initiative was taken by social welfare minister of state (independent charge) Asim Arun after the matter was raised in the ongoing Budget session of the assembly. On Wednesday, the minister held an online meeting with the district magistrates of Hardoi, Ghaziabad and Kannauj, where it was decided to implement the system from Feb 25.Saying that the objective of the scheme is to establish direct, time-bound and record-based communication between public representatives and officers, Arun said: "It is often observed that some officers do not answer calls from public representatives, which hinders public interest work. Under the new system, if any officer does not respond to a public representative's call within 10 minutes, the public representative can inform the command centre, which will immediately direct the officer concerned to call back the representative and will maintain coordination until its confirmation."A dedicated smartphone and special software will be used to run this system, through which data on officers' response time will be kept secure. The proposed policy also takes care of officers' work-life balance, Arun said. "It will be effective only during working days and office hours. This facility will be valid only for CUG/govt numbers allocated by the govt. Officers providing better communication and quick response will be encouraged, while reports of officers repeatedly showing negligence will be sent to the govt. This initiative will not only increase administrative transparency but also enable more effective resolution of public problems," Arun said.