CMO warning at bureaucratic inaction on public grievances

Bhubaneswar: In a bid to ensure better public service delivery, chief minister Mohan Majhi's office has cracked down on bureaucratic delays by directing department heads to initiate disciplinary proceedings against officials who fail to address citizens' complaints promptly. The directive comes after multiple instances of inaction were noticed in dealing with grievances submitted during the CM's weekly public hearing sessions.
In a letter addressed to secretaries of various departments, the Director General of Police, district collectors, and superintendents of police, additional chief secretary Nikunja Bihari Dhal on Tuesday urged them to ensure an accelerated solution to grievances received by the CM.
Public hearing of grievances is among the topmost priorities of the govt, which provides a platform for people to reach out to senior govt officers at all levels from anywhere. "A review of the grievances received so far shows many of them are lying pending for long as there is a delay at various levels to resolve them," Dhal wrote.
Dhal, who heads the team of bureaucrats in the CMO, pointed out that because of the delay in redressal of complaints, people have been coming to the CM with the same complaints again and again.
Asking the officers to ensure timely action on the complaints, the additional chief secretary asked them to take action under the Odisha Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1962. The rules allow govt authorities to impose fines, censure, withhold increments or promotions, or suspend govt servants for dereliction of duty.
Since July 1, 2024, the CM and many of his cabinet colleagues have been holding grievance redressal every Monday at the grievance redressal cell at Unit V, barring public holidays and if the CM has other pressing official engagements. As of Jan 31, the CMO has received more than 52,000 complaints, out of which around 19,000 were disposed of and the rest, more than 33,000, are pending, govt sources said.