Day 80 – Q 5.Examine the significance of robust grievance redressal mechanism for creating a trustworthy ecosystem of public services.

5. Examine the significance of robust grievance redressal mechanism for creating a trustworthy ecosystem of public services. 

सार्वजनिक सेवाओं के भरोसेमंद पारिस्थितिकी तंत्र बनाने के लिए मजबूत शिकायत निवारण तंत्र के महत्व की जांच करें।

Introduction:

Public Grievance Redressal is said to be the cornerstone of any well governed democracy. No administration can claim to be accountable, responsive and user-friendly unless it has established an efficient and effective grievance redress mechanism. In fact, the grievance redress mechanism of an organization is the gauge to measure its efficiency and effectiveness as it provides important feedback on the working of the administration.

Body

• The government shares the concern for ensuring responsive, accountable, transparent, decentralized and people friendly administration at all levels. Good Governance is the key to a Nation’s progress and an important step to make the entire system transparent and faster.
• Public Grievances are a significant indicator of the state of governance in any system.  In a democracy, the legitimacy of the government depends primarily on public trust and support, which is often contingent upon its capacity to deliver quality governance.
• Efficient and Effective public institutions provide the foundation on which the story of public trust can be developed, building on public satisfaction and with administration and service delivery. The public grievance redressal mechanism serves as an indicator to gauge the efficiency and effectiveness of administrative processes.
• Citizen-Centric online services are one of the most important aspects of an efficient and effective public administration system.  It leads to transparency and accountability in governance and also fosters equitable growth. Technology is the empowering tool for citizens and a measure of accountability for the government.
• Public grievance redressal is very important component of a responsive administration and it is an instrument to measure efficiency and effectiveness as it provides important feedback on the working of an organisation. Public Grievance Redressal mechanism was also central to the Sevottam model.
• For effective public grievance redressal, an important tool is regular analysis of public grievance received in order to help the identification of the problem areas.  A Grievance Analysis Study was conducted through Quality Council on India for identifying grievance prone areas, undertake root cause analysis and to recommend systematic analysis and to recommend systematic reform.
• While public grievances reflect the problem areas and challenges that confront the institutions involved in service delivery and administration, these also offer the opportunity to address these problems before they explode in the form of public discontent. 
• The awareness of grievances is the first condition for effectively addressing them. Expression rather than repression of voice, therefore, should be encouraged if the objective is to win public trust or improve the state of governance.
• Timely capture and appropriate analysis of public grievances offers an opportunity to public institutions to address the performance appropriately.  It is important to realise that participatory approach is necessary, where suggestions to improve the functioning of institutions or policy are invited from public and considered with an open mind.
• Redressal of complaints and grievances is an important part of health service delivery and quality of service standards. With the recent high profile cases of some private hospitals in Delhi and Gurgaon as well as public health care hospitals in various parts of the country, it is clear that there is an urgent need to devise and implement a clear and practical swift grievances and complaint redressal mechanism that is patient and public friendly and improves access, availability and quality.

Conclusion

Grievance Redress Mechanism is part and parcel of the machinery of any administration. There is, however, considerable frustration and dissatisfaction amongst the people, especially the weaker section of society, with regards to the government’s grievance redressal abilities. Thus, effective and timely redressal of public grievances becomes an important hallmark of responsive and responsible governance.