While launching his social media presence via twitter (@cmofkarantaka) and Facebook (facebook.com/CM of Karnataka) recently, the CM had said: “I understand there is a need for a presence on social media to be able to respond to people, especially the younger generation. It is a necessity”.
A social media presence to respond to the people? Its a noble objective, and seems to follow the PM’s vision, but the reality is painful.
Take the case of Jayanti Bhattacharya in Bangalore
She is six months pregnant, 33 years old and represents bangalore’s young generation. She resides at the Golden Enclave in Bangalore and usually walked to and from Manipal Hospital for her check ups. On September 24th after a glucose test at the Manipal Hospital, she returned to her residence walking, a journey that usually takes her five minutes.
Bhattacharya slipped and fell on her knees. Her phone, bag and medical reports went flying. She was helped to her feet by another woman. She was dazed and in shock and her knees were scraped. Soon her anguish turned to anger. She decided to ‘connect with the CM’
Bhattacharya went home, soothed her wounds, changed, and returned to Manipal Hospital to check if her baby was fine. She took out her handycam and filmed her way to the hospital. The Hospital confirmed that her baby was fine, as was she, and she felt reinvigorated.
She titled the video ‘100 minutes of horror’ and sent it to the chief minister, “Dear Chief Minister….this is the route I take every day. This is what I go through every day. I am going to show you what pedestrians like me go through. I am six months pregnant and I just fell down because there is no pavement to walk on.”
The video depicts the semi existent / non existent pavement in all its glory – uneven, loose, missing slabs, open ditches, stagnant water, street vendors, barricades and blocked storm water drains.
Bhattacharya goes on to say in the video: “This is old Airport Road. This is not a tiny town in the middle of nowhere.”
Apart from the CM, Bhattacharya also sent the video to the authorities in BBMP, BWSSB, Mayor Shanta Kumari and corporator M Chandrappa Reddy on September 25. It is learnt that It is learnt that till date there has been no response.
According to Bhattacharya, the owner of TLB, the the leather boutique in Indiranagar, the pavement has been in this condition for two years.
Speaking to newskarnakata, Ms. Bhattacharaya said, “I waited for a week for a response, before I spoke to the media, though they had called me within an hour of the video being sent. I was hoping for a response and some action as the pavement is dangerous for all who use it and must be repaired. She added, ” there has not been even an email response from any body and I was surprised, especially aftter the CM’s effort to connect with the people and the Prme Minister’s initiative in this regard. I appeal to the government and BBMP to correct the situation, or I will approach an organization called ‘bangalore rising’ to help get this done”.
Digital India
Recently, the union cabinet approved PM Modi’s dream e-governance initiative at a total cost of Rs: 1 Lakh crore.
The project aims to ensure that government services are available to citizens electronically and help people gain benefits from the latest information and communication technology.
The project also aims to ensure that all villages in India have high speed Internet. Sources say that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will head the monitoring group of the project and aims aims to complete the project by 2019, election year.
The Digital India programme is a transformed version of the already running National e-Governance Plan. The project aims to provide thrust to nine pillars identified as growth areas. These pillars include — broadband highways, everywhere mobile connectivity, Public Internet Access Programme, e-Governance, e-Kranti (which aims to give electronic delivery of services), information for all, electronics manufacturing, IT for Jobs and early harvest programmes.
All this augurs well for the tech savvy and busy younger generation who want to connect with their jurisdictional bureaucracy and public representatives and vice versa.
An unresponsive government
At www.newskarnataka.com too, our experience has been similar to that of Ms Bhattacharya. We have carried a number of stories on civic inequities in the citizens interest and sent them to the appropriate authorities as per the email Id’s mentioned on their web sites, ( In the case of Mangalore, incredibly, the Mangalore City Corporation website, does not list an email id for the Mayor on the contact us page !) but to no avail. There has been no response. Its not clear if they have escaped the inbox for the spam box, not been monitored, or just plain ignored.
The state government seems to have taken a cue from the central government’s e thrust and set up a variety of e mechanisms. however they do need to revisit their usage and response methodologies, if they are ‘to connect with the people’
