The Mamata Banerjee government is set to launch a programme to receive grievances from common people over the phone.

The move comes apparently to redress complaints speedily against rural bodies ahead of panchayat polls scheduled in 2023.

“The redress programme will be similar to Didike Bolo, which was run by (poll consultant) I-PAC soon after the ruling party faced a debacle of sorts in 2019 Lok Sabha polls (with the BJP winning an unprecedented 18 parliamentary seats in Bengal). The difference is that the new programme will be run by the state government itself,” said a senior government official.

Sources said that the programme had been planned after complaints started pouring in against several rural bodies, most of which are run by the ruling Trinamul.“This is not a comfortable situation for any ruling party to be in ahead of the rural polls. This programme has been initiated to restore the faith of common people in the ruling establishment. The Didike Bolo programme had successfully redressed the grievances of common people after the debacle of the ruling party in 2019 Lok Sabha polls,” said a source.

According to the plan, the government is set to float a tender to select an agency that will receive complaints from common people. People will be able to lodge their grievances by calling up a certain number that will be shared with the public.

The state government will engage another agency by floating a tender, which will carry out investigations to find out whether the grievances have any merit.

“On completion of the inquiry, the agency will submit its report to the chief minister’s office (CMO). Based on the findings of the agency, the government will then take steps to redress the grievances of common people,” explained a senior official.

As of now, people can lodge complaints with the CMO by writing letters. But the CMO has to depend on the local authorities to get to know whether the complaints have any merit.“The existing system has some loopholes. First, the local authorities often send reports without carrying out proper inquiries into the complaints. Second, the departments and the districts where the complaints are sent for verification often take several weeks to verify the complaints. This causes delay in delivering justice to common people,” said a source.

Once the new system is launched, the grievance redress mechanism will work faster, senior bureaucrats are hoping.In a recent administrative review meeting, chief minister Mamata Banerjee asked the officials to redress grievances of common people within seven days.

“Once the new system is put in place, this seven-day target can be achieved,” said a bureaucrat.Sources also said that the panchayat department has also taken an initiative to launch a portal where common people can lodge their complaints, if any, against the rural bodies.“But rural people are not so familiar with portals. They are more used to calling up a number and lodge their grievances. This was why Didike Bolo was so successful. The same method will be followed now,” said a source.

The move, sources said, could help Trinamul’s image if the ruling establishment can initiate action against the guilty based on the complaints by the villagers.“The villagers are angry with many panchayat functionaries of the ruling party as irregularities were allegedly noticed in schemes like the 100 days’ job scheme, among others. Now, it remains to be seen whether the party can take action against these people who are politically influential at the local level,” said a bureaucrat.

There is another proposal which can take the initiative further. “A team of senior police officers will be attached to the CMO. These officers will be given the responsibility to conduct a thorough inquiry in case any grievance against the rural bodies is found have merits. These officers will have the authority to take legal action, including arrests, against those who will be found guilty. But this particular proposal is yet to be approved,” said a source.