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And now laptops for MCD field officers

Sandeep Joshi

About 400 field offices, where engineers and inspectors sit, will have one computer each

NEW DELHI: Though providing laptops to 134 municipal councillors failed to make any impact on the functioning of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, outgoing Municipal Commissioner Rakesh Mehta believes that installing computers in the offices of all engineers and inspectors involved in field work across the city will certainly help in effective redress of civic problems and make officials more accountable.

This latest initiative of Mr. Mehta, who believes that information technology can altogether change the civic body's approach towards dealing with people's problems, is being seen as an important parting gift to the civic body as well as Delhiites. Significantly, Mr. Mehta has to his credit several IT initiatives that changed the way the civic body functions today, which includes computerised citizen service bureaus, toll plazas and MCD's interactive website.

According to the proposal, nearly 400 field offices of the civic body where assistant engineers, junior engineers and inspectors sit will have one computer each so that they can have access to all complaints made online. This is being termed an effort to bridge the gap between the public and MCD's field officers in order to ensure effective complaint redress mechanism in the civic body.

Mr. Mehta, who reportedly is a bit disappointed with the way the municipal councillors failed to make use of laptops given to them, feels that giving computers to field officers would make them directly responsible for all complaints related to their areas. "After giving laptops to the councillors we had thought that they will personally monitor complaints related to their areas and help in improving the general functioning of the Corporation. Ironically, let alone use the laptops for the benefit of the civic body and people, the councillors have not even bothered to visit MCD's website," remarked a senior official.

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