'It's a revolution': Indian officials deliver public services at people's doorsteps
New Delhi : For weeks, Sudesh Kumar had been having a sinking feeling. His driving licence was about to expire. He knew the misery that lay ahead: taking time off his property rental business to queue for hours in the muggy heat, facing the chaos in the squalid government office, and finally capitulating to the tout who promised to push through his application – for a price.
This time, it turned out to be as easy as ordering pizza.
Kumar dialled 1076 and booked an appointment for a person from the Delhi government to come to his home. The two men sat on the sofa of Kumar’s small house in Chattarpur while the representative took down Kumar’s details on a tablet, filled out a form, uploaded his ID card and photograph and took his biometric data. Kumar paid the fee with his credit card.
“It was over in 15 minutes. I couldn’t believe how easy it was. In a few days’ time, my new driving licence will come through the post. Dealing with the government has turned from hell into heaven,” said Kumar.
Other residents of the Indian capital are equally stunned. The Delhi government, ruled by the Aam Aadmi (Common Man) party, has rolled out a radical scheme, at a cost of 150m rupees (£1.57m), to free the city’s 18 million residents from having to visit government offices – and reduce corruption.
Forty services including applications for driving licences, marriage certificates, pensions, and water connections are now being delivered to people’s doorsteps. A battalion of young male and female foot soldiers (“mobile sahayaks”), armed with tablets and cameras, carry out the appointments, whizzing around the city on scooters. The fee is set deliberately low, at 50 rupees (50p), and the service is available from 9am to 9pm, seven days a week. In three months’ time, the list of services will be extended to 100. A private company, VFS Global, which handles visa and passport services, has been hired to run the project.
Delhi’s chief minister, Arvind Kejriwal, called the project a “revolution in governance”. His deputy, Manish Sisodia, said the aim was to ease the life of the common citizen.
“Usually the citizen goes to the government,” said the minister for administrative reforms, Kailash Gahlot. “We wanted to reverse this and take the government to the citizen. People waste so much time to get simple documents.”
On day one, the helpline received 21,000 calls. Of these, only 2,728 were answered, and about 370 home visits were made. The government reacted to what it called the “enormous response” by increasing the number of telephone operators from 40 to 150 and the number of lines from 50 to 200 in two days.
Some critics worry that the 50-rupee fee is simply too low to sustain the scheme. Gahlot said that if the costs turned out to be unviable for VFS Global, the government would make up the difference, to ensure the project’s long-term viability.
There have been teething problems. Trilok Sharma, a marketing agent in Janakpuri who wanted to apply for a new water connection, found his mobile helpers could have done with more training. “They didn’t seem familiar with the software or the options it kept showing, nor with government rules. I would have preferred more experienced people to handle it. It would be quicker. That said, it’s a wonderful thing to have happened to the city,” said Sharma.
Internet problems are also common. When mobile helper Pankaj Khanna turned up at the home of commerce student Riddhima Gauba in Saket to take her application for a learner’s licence, the signal was so poor they had to leave the living room and stand on the balcony. Even then, it took him some time to upload Gauba’s application and credit card payment. And even when the internet is working, the government server can be slow.
For Sanjeev Oberoi, a technical manager with a US multinational, visiting a government office was synonymous with torture. It often entailed waiting for hours and reaching the counter only to find the official had gone to lunch or left for the day. But when he applied for a duplicate driving licence sitting in his Greater Kailash home this week, the experience, he said, “was a dream”.
Oberoi is one of those who fears the low fee will make the operation unsustainable. “They should charge more so that they can sustain it long term. It’s too good to endanger. It’s a great revolution in our lives and must be protected,” he said.
courtesy : theguardian.com
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“Full prepared..going to win,” Congress MP KC Venugopal ahead of Kerala polls
EC not functioning as a neutral institution: Venugopal
Congress MP K. C. Venugopal on Monday raised concerns over the election schedule announced by the Election Commission of India for the upcoming Kerala Assembly election, questioning the timing of the poll dates and alleging that the schedule leaves limited time for campaigning.
Speaking to news agency ANI in Delhi after the poll panel announced elections in five states and Union Territories, Venugopal said that the Congress and the United Democratic Front (UDF) are fully prepared for the elections and confident of victory. At the same time, he questioned the pattern of dates announced by the Election Commission.
“We are fully prepared, we are going to win the elections... You can see how the Election Commission has set the dates. The first phase of elections is on the 9th, nominations are due until the 23rd, scrutiny is on the 24th, nominations can be withdrawn until the 26th, and after that, there are 11 days for campaigning,” he said.
“As for Kerala, there is Easter and Good Friday in the first week...The Election Commission could have announced the dates earlier... The counting date is on May 4th, so what was the point of holding elections in Kerala so early? What is their intention behind holding elections on the same day in Kerala, Puducherry, and Assam?... We are confident that we will win, but the people of the country are seeing the biased attitude of the Election Commission...,” he added.
He further stated that his party was ready for elections irrespective of the dates announced by the poll body.
“We are going to win the election. India's strategy has been set up. And we are all ready for winning this election. But one thing as far as declaring election, even though they are giving only for five days, we are going to win the election. We have no problem,” he said.
Detailing the poll schedule while questioning the time available for campaigning, he stated, “but you can see the pattern of date which the election commission announced. Yesterday they declared election, and today they notified us. The first phase of election on April 9th, filing of nomination will be over on the 23rd of this month, 24th scrutiny, 26th withdrawal of nomination. After 26, four plus seven, 11 days campaign.”
“As far as Kerala is concerned, April first week is a holy week. The holiday week means, Good Friday is there. Nobody will do anything on Good Friday. Easter is the big festival. These festivals are natural, you have to see that. Among the 11 days, working days, two, three days will go for holidays. Then hardly seven, eight days for campaigning in this election for candidates,” the Congress MP questioned.
The Congress leader said the Election Commission could have announced the dates earlier if there was a need for an early election schedule.
Questioning the urgency behind placing Kerala in the first phase of polling, he added that the counting date is much later.
“Which is the date of counting? Fourth May. Then what is the urgency of putting Kerala in the first phase without giving sufficient time for candidates? And putting Kerala, Puducherry, Assam together, what is the intention behind that?” Venugopal questioned.
He also alleged that the Election Commission was not functioning as a neutral institution.
“The Election commission is completely losing that capacity as a neutral player. You can see 14 of our prime minister's programs over and on the 15th they announce the election, 16th notification comes,” he said.
Venugopal further stated that such tactics would not affect the Congress’ prospects in the election.
“They think that this type of techniques and tactics, because of these techniques and tactics, UDF is going to lose, and Congress is going to lose. This is their complete dream only. This is not going to happen. We are very much confident at any cost, whether they are not giving any time also, we are going to win the election,” he said.
“But the people of India are watching this. The tricks of the election commission. To restrict the campaign, people of India are watching. This I want to bring into the notice of the nation. That's all,” Venugopal said.
The Election Commission of India on Sunday announced the schedule for the Kerala Assembly election. Polling in the state will be held in a single phase on April 9 while the counting of votes is scheduled to take place on May 4.
