Citizens' charter for Maharashtra civic bodies

Very soon, delay in completing an official work within a specific time-frame could mean punishment for the civic officials.

This provision is a part of citizens' charter to be prepared by the municipal commissioners. The charter will include a list of services to be provided to the common man and the time-frame, within which, they need to be completed.

As per the charter, no important file will be kept pending with officer or employee in any department of the municipal corporation for more than seven working days.

Similarly, the files, which are not on priority, will be disposed of in 45 days, while decision on those files, which need to sent to other departments, will be taken in three months.

“If a civic official does not fulfil the stipulated time-frame, he will be held guilty and punished as per rules,” officials said.

Even though citizens' charter was one of the demands of Team Anna, which Parliament adopted as “sense of the house”, the State legislature had already passed the Maharashtra Municipal Corporation and Municipal Council (second amendment) Bill in the recent monsoon session.

The new legislation, providing citizens' charter, was published in the Gazette on August 16. Officials said the amendment was done to bring effectiveness and efficiency in the civic administration.

However, matters which are sub-judice and issues which are marked to Lokayukta, Deputy Lokayukta and other constitutional bodies, have been excluded from the charter.

The Commissioners have been granted powers to sanction filing of cases against civic officials, if such a request comes from the police or any government agency.

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