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With the help of a call centre, CCTVs and wi-fi, residents of Mishrikoti can flag issues relating to panchayat development officers, police station, schools, hospitals, panchayat clerks and ration card information centre, among other things, to get them resolved instantly.
To raise a complaint, residents of the village can call a number (1800-270-0269) that is manned by an interactive voice response (IVR) that registers details including name, ward number and particulars of the grievance. Depending on the nature of the call, it is routed to the authority concerned.
To ensure efficiency, the system is built in a way where if the call is not responded to, or if the problem is not resolved in time, it is escalated to the higher authorities automatically. Also, a day after the complaints are registered, random calls are made to check the satisfaction level of the works.
The IVR service that enables complaint redressal, has been set up with the help of Sequoia Capital-backed cloud telephony company Knowlarity Communications, which has also implemented such a service for the Hubli-Dharwad Municipal Corporation.
"India is the largest democracy and many leaders have emphasised empowering panchayats since they are one of the oldest local governance institutions in rural India. This has gained much popularity in the current times and everyone agrees that the local community should be provided with the recognition and opportunity to set their own priorities as well as make their own strategies and implement them as long as they are in line with the bigger goals," said Girija Gowda, head-sales south at Knowlarity Communications.
"In the past, the villagers had to run from pillar to post trying to access information. But here, most of the details are available on one number. Even the escalations happen through the same number which itself is half the battle won. This also cuts the red tape and makes the system more efficient."
With more gram panchayats looking to adopt technology under the government's Digital India and Smart Cities' initiative, Knowlarity Communications expects more villages in Karnataka to adopt its technology offering.
"The elected representatives of tier II cities are excited to adapt technology which would help them in better administration and governance. The telcos have educated everyone on the power of the cellphone and citizens are extremely comfortable logging in complaints among others, using their phones," Gowda said.
"People would want to take advantage of this service because Digital India dream would get realised only when digitisation reaches tier II and tier III locations."
