BANGALORE: People who have so far taken endless rounds to government offices can now heave a sigh of relief. Launching the Karnataka State Guarantee of Services Act which guarantees a turnaround time for 151 services like birth/death certificates, tax clearance documents and identity cards, Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda on Thursday said, “We are trying to add more services in the future. This effort is very people-friendly.”
The service was available online on a pilot basis in five places: Chitradurga, Dharwad, Aurad in Bidar, Puttur in Dakshina Kannada and Jayanagar in Bangalore. Gowda added that the officials should not view the Act as a punishment and it was just a way to help people.
“Soon after the inauguration in Dharwad, nearly 600-700 applications have come in. We will update the government websites and provide posters listing all the details,” he said and added that penalty would be imposed on errant officials.
Helpline Service: A telephone number was announced for people to contact for queries and clarification. People can contact 44554455.
MP H N Ananthkumar said that all the chief ministers must unite and pressurise the Prime Minister to adopt a similar Act. “Central Government too needs a similar law. They backtracked Lokpal, Lokayukta and citizens’ charter. There must be some pressure on them,” he said.
He assured to write to the all CMs and said, if the letter fails to get any reply, he will take a delegation of CMs to meet the PM. Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister S Suresh Kumar said that the Act implemented in the state was better than other similar acts adopted across the country. “While other states guarantee 30-50 services, we have included 151 services. Our Act has been appreciated by Nitish Kumar as well,” he said.