Monday, December 14, 2009

Some pleasantness with Indian Government Services


Looking up needle in the haystack is difficult; In case we do find that needle, it boosts our positive spirit. There are some good experiences with Govt services among the haystack of bad experiences.

I dreaded transferring Ration Card from my native to the current residential location. When we went to the Civil Supplies office, the experience was contrary to the expectations. We just made two trips to the office. Once to submit and the next time to collect. They gave a small slip with the Ashoka seal, signature & the due date clearly written. On that due date, the work is done. No touts, no "something", not any unnecessary trips. I can say, I was shocked for having done that so easily!

Getting a driving license was so easy as well. Nothing extra was paid and no intermediaries. The inspector really evaluated the driving skill and within half a day got the license. There was one police man took a 30min session about traffic rules in a class room kind of setup. Simply amazed.

Recently there was some public nuisance in our area. We called patrol police at 100. Can you believe? The police came in 10min and the problem was immediately solved.

I have been postponing my visit to Passport office. Reached a stage that I can't postpone it any more. After the recent arrest of some officials, there appears to be some change. Everything seems to go in some order though chaos and heated arguments plenty. Dogs walk freely into the building, they climb stairs and walk through the rooms they like, unmindful of the higher breed - the human beings. The worst thing is that the security guy doesn't yell at the dog but yells at people! There are severe problems related to over crowding, lack of space, under staffing and the complex process involved in proving your address and your nationality. However, the work got done in one visit and within half a day.

I have received tax refunds promptly so for!

There are countless bad experiences people can share based on their experiences, especially when India is downgraded from 72 to 84 or 85 in the corruption index by Transparency International. Sometimes bad experiences are "easier" than good experiences. Anyways, Change is possible but it requires time and collective action from people. Achievable! I WANT to believe that!

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