Gondia: Commissioner Sandeep Deshmukh asks for clean, timely work on public service rights

Gondia, 5th: The functioning of the Right to Public Services Commission must be made more orderly and effective so that people receive government services within the stipulated time, transparently and with sensitivity. Sandeep Deshmukh, commissioner of the Nagpur division of the Maharashtra State Right to Public Services Commission, gave this direction. He said people should not have to make repeated rounds of offices for the same task, and that officers and employees should work with vigilance and dispose of pending cases on time.

Commissioner Deshmukh was speaking at a review meeting of the Right to Public Services Commission held at the Collector's office. Collector Mandar Patki, Zilla Parishad Chief Executive Officer Jenith Chandra Dontula, Additional Collector Abhijeet Ghorpade and Resident Deputy Collector Bhaiyyasaheb Behere were present. Deputy collectors, sub-divisional officers and heads of various departments also attended. At the start of the meeting, Collector Patki welcomed the commissioner with a bouquet.

Deshmukh said notified services of various departments have been delivered to people through the Aaple Sarkar portal. He asked the officers and employees concerned to pay special attention to the difficulties and complaints people face in availing these services, and to pending cases. Transparency should be maintained at every stage, from receiving an application to the final decision, and cases should be disposed of within the stipulated period.

He also said technical improvements should be made to make the portal more user-friendly. If access to the portal's dashboard is given to the officers concerned, they will be able to see directly the time taken in each case and its current status. This would make it easier for first and second appeal officers to review cases.

The commissioner suggested that service processes be coordinated so that people can get information about, and benefits of, several government services at one time. At the front of service centres, information on available services should be displayed, through a QR code or otherwise, in a way an ordinary person can easily understand.

According to Deshmukh, providing government services is an important responsibility of officers and employees. They should therefore treat people with sensitivity and give first priority to completing their work without delay. He expressed satisfaction that disposal of Aaple Sarkar portal cases in Gondia district has exceeded 90 per cent, and said this showed the vigilance and good work of officers and employees. Collector Patki presented at the meeting details of the portal's services in the district, applications received and cases disposed of.

After the meeting, Commissioner Deshmukh made a surprise visit to the Aaple Sarkar service centre at Ganeshnagar and reviewed its functioning.

Under the Aaple Sarkar portal in Gondia district, 176 service centres are operating in the urban area and 509 in gram panchayat areas. Through 14 departments in the district, about 2.50 lakh applications have been received so far, of which 2.39 lakh have been disposed of. The disposal rate is 91.6 per cent, while rejected cases are only 0.51 per cent. The State Excise Department leads as the department with the best performance and the highest rating from the public.

The Maharashtra Right to Public Services Act, 2015 has been in force in the state since April 28, 2015. The law gives people a legal right to notified government services transparently and within a fixed time. A total of 1,212 services of 68 state departments are notified on the Aaple Sarkar portal. If a service is not delivered in time or is refused without reason, a first and second appeal can be made. If still dissatisfied, the Act provides for a third appeal to the Maharashtra State Right to Public Services Commission. The law also provides for a penalty of up to Rs 5,000 per case on an officer who is negligent in duty.

The Maharashtra State Right to Public Services Commission is responsible for monitoring whether notified services are reaching people on time, for coordination and control, and for suggesting necessary improvements in the way services are delivered. The commission is headquartered in Mumbai, and commissioners work according to the revenue divisions. The Aaple Sarkar portal's website is https://aaplesarkar.mahaonline.gov.in.