Team Herald
MARGAO: At the first meeting of the South District Consumer Protection Council, all government departments were urged to ensure seamless and quick redressal of grievances from citizens.
This was one of items on the lengthy list of demands that were put forward by various State and village-level consumer forums that had attended this meeting that was held at the District Collectorate on Tuesday.
South Goa District Collector Asvin Chandru who chaired the meeting took note of the suggestions about how the government departments should be held accountable and that grievance officers as per the Consumer Act, should be available to meet the complainants, especially those who live in remote talukas like Canacona, Sanguem etc.
In addition, calls were made for forming Sanitation and Waste Management Committees, even in village panchayats.
Attendees also demanded audits of the functioning of the Consumer Redressal Forums, given that only a small percentage of cases have been disposed of, with most cases taking two years to get resolved, instead of the official duration of two months.
Problems faced by citizens with various departments such as Power, PWD, Animal Husbandry, were also highlighted with suggestions given on how to tackle these issues.
Questions were also raised about the condition of bus stops across the district, be it encroachments by vendors at the premises or the absence of adequate facilities despite promises made in the past to complete these. The Transport Department was also asked to display details about revised fares and new routes prominently.
The meeting that was hosted by the department of civil supplies and consumer affairs and other members present were the officials from the PWD, Bureau of Indian Standards, FDA, Legal Metrology, Health, Electricity, WRD, Animal Husbandry, Transport, Social welfare, Police, Education, Commercial Tax and Fire.
