Banka: Asserting that Bihar’s grievance redressal law, first of its kind in the country, had strengthened good governance, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today said more than 89,937 complaints had been sorted out under the mechanism in nearly seven months of its launch.
Bihar Public Grievance Redressal Act was enacted on June 5, 2016 – the day ‘Loknayak’ Jayprakash Narayan started the “total revolution” in 1974 – Kumar said, addressing a “Chetna Sabha” in Banka as part of his “Nishchay Yatra”.
“In a short period, since its launch in June, over 1,13,116 complaints were registered under the Act, out of which 89,937 have been redressed,” he said highlighting the results of the legislation brought by his government to enhance public faith in democracy.
The Chief Minister said, “It is a step forward of the Janata Ke Darbar Mein Mukhya Mantri that he ran for 10 years after assuming power for the first time in 2005.”
For implementation of the Act, Lok Sikhayat Nivaran Kendra (Public Grievances Redressal Centre) were opened at district and sub-division levels across the state, where a person could submit his application and a complaint would be redressed in a fixed time-frame, he said.
Under the Act, it’s mandatory that the grievance had to be redressed within 60 days of its submission, the Chief Minister said.
Kumar, who has been moving across the state as part of “Nishchay yatra” started since November 9 last to take stock of functioning of such centres and other institutions established for implementation of programmes under “seven resolves”, narrated a few cases resolved under the Act in different places.
In Katihar, a man, who was not getting paper of land receipt since 1980, was now receiving it regularly after he made a plea, Kumar said narrating tales of success of the legislation.
In Munger, a widow was not getting the money of her husband transferred to her account after his death. When she filed a complaint with the Centre, bank officials transferred the money to her before coming on the date, he said.
Kumar told people in detail about programmes under “seven resolves” to provide toilet, electricity connection, drinking water and sewage link to every household in the state.
Dwelling in details on prohibition, the Chief Minister listed advantages of stopping sale and trade of liquor, domestic as well Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) which has triggered spike in sale of milk, sweets, ready-made clothes and sewing machines among others out of money saved from alcohol.
He exhorted people to participate in the human chain on January 21 to reaffirm commitment towards prohibition.
PTI