Bill on services passed in a jiffy

Ranchi, Aug. 30: Jharkhand became the fourth state today to pass the landmark right to service bill that puts the onus on government officials to render citizens' services within a specified time-frame with the state Assembly passing it without discussion.
Along with the Right to Service Bill, the government steamrollered six other key bills, all without discussion, as the Opposition was too tied up in protests against a cabinet resolution on allowing export of iron ore fines.
Among them were Jharkhand Electronic Services Delivery Bill that mandates electronic delivery of services by all government departments within the next five years, and bills on fiscal discipline, policy for hawkers and municipalities.
Speaker C.P. Singh explained why he went along with the government and allowed the bills to be tabled and passed. "The Opposition stalled the House with one just one question and did not want a discussion. So, I had no option but to allow the bills to be passed," he said.
Just as well.
The Right to Service Bill, so far enacted in Bihar, Rajasthan and neighbouring Bihar, is set to ensure various services to the public within a stipulated time frame and curb harassment at the hands of laggard government officials.
It comprises a charter of services to be rendered to citizens by departments, making government officials accountable, failing which a fine/fines would be deducted from their salaries. Fines can be anything between Rs 250 and Rs 5,000.
The bill, which designates officers who will be liable to discharge the listed services, also includes a provision for appellate and review authorities to look into complaints of non-delivery of services and impose the fine on the officials.
Any person, whose application is rejected by the designated officer, can file an appeal within 30 days. The appellate authorities will have the same powers as a civil court.
The Jharkhand Rajya Sewa Dene Ki Guarantee Bill, covers block offices, schools/colleges, Jharkhand State Electricity Board, medical colleges and hospitals, transport department, public distribution system, departments of agriculture, labour, mines, police, civic bodies and circle offices.
Almost all of these departments have often been in the spotlight for poor work ethic. Many like JSEB are known for harassing ordinary citizens no end.
For instance, under the proposed law, the police will have to submit verification reports for issuing passports, arms licences within a week. The officer in charge of a police station will be the designated officer.
Similarly, old age pension applications have to be cleared by block development officers within 21 days and school and college principals cannot hold on to applications beyond 30 days.
The JSEB executive engineer now has to provide power connections within 30 days and assistant engineers will ensure that incorrect power bills are rectified within 24 hours. Line and cable breakdown has to be rectified within six hours in urban areas and 36 hours in rural areas.
How soon will the law take effect so that the ordinary citizen is impacted positively?
The Right to Service Bill and the other bills passed by the House today will become law once the governor gives is assent. After that it will take some time for the services to be streamlined.
"We will take around two months to notify some of the services which will be covered by the act," admitted principal secretary to chief minister D.K. Tiwary. Bihar Assembly, he pointed out, passed the law on March 28, 2011, and the government implemented it on August 15.
The other key legislation of the day, the Jharkhand Electronic Service Delivery Bill, stipulates that every government department publish within 180 days a list of services to be delivered through electronic mode, the date by which each such service would be available and the manner of their delivery.
The bill also provides departments with a time-frame of five years.


I should be happy on seeing such alacrity on the part of the state government.
But I am not.
Why?
I ask why the hurry?
Is is because they are making toothless tigers of the bills?
Just as we have the various laws against corruption and other crimes again women, I fear, they are just making another toothless law.
Note this sentence "The appellate authorities will have the same powers as a civil court.
Why civil court?
We know how notorious civil courts are in prolonging cases which are made to run for years on end.
The person filing the complaint will have to fight from his own pocket but the government employee will have the whole government machinery supporting him.
Is there any provision in the bill that the government official against whom the complaint is made will bear all expenses himself and he shall be held in suspension until the case is decided?
If not, then they are just fooling the people.