State government’s ‘Sarkar Apke Dwar (Government at your doorstep)’ initiative is not only bridging the gap between bureaucracy and commoners, but also building trust in the Government machinery among rural residents of far flung villages in Jharkhand, Deputy Commissioners actively involved in running the campaign said on Thursday.

Dhanbad Deputy Commissioner Amit Kumar said that as many as 728 written requisitions were submitted by common villagers to the Sarkar Apke Dwar team in a Dhanbad Panchayat earlier this week. “Most of the cases we have come across so far were related to beneficiaries who have not received compensations or other benefits from the Government. Land disputes also form a heavy chunk of the complaints registered during our visits to the Panchayats,” Kumar said.

Under Sarkar Apke Dwar, the Deputy Commissioner and Deputy Development Commissioner of all the 24 districts in Jharkhand visit Panchayats twice every week and listen to the grievances of common villagers. The team of officials that visits the Panchayats tries to address most of the issues on the spot and sets short deadlines for issues that require time for redressal. The process has been in place for quite some time. However, it has become more methodical under the current Government, say DCs.  

“We get around 500 complaints during each visit. The number of complainants has also increased as people are gradually becoming aware of the campaign,” said Kumar. “The process has become more orderly now, and we get a list of complainants prior to visiting the villages,” he added.

In January, Chief Secretary DK Tiwari directed all the DCs and DDCs to organise Sarkar Apke Dwar visits twice every week. He asked the DCs to visit the villages with their team on Wednesdays and the DDCs to do the same on Saturdays. He also asked the District Administrations to prepare a timeline for issues that cannot be fixed on the spot and follow up regularly.

Ranchi Deputy Commissioner Rai Mahimapat Ray said that the initiative has seen a warm response in rural and suburban Ranchi. “We have visited at least 50 places under the campaign and villagers have come out in large numbers to share their problems,” said Ray. “Most of the problems in Ranchi were related to Indira Awas Yojana and other welfare schemes,” he added.

Under the initiative, officials not only solve problems of villagers, but also spread awareness about the various Government schemes. The campaign also aims at making the largely illiterate villagers attuned to the Government’s ways of functioning.