IE : To bring change in Octroi, BMC starts ‘Mission’ : Oct 15,2007
Corporation’s training programme for grassroot workers – To bring change in
Octroi, BMC starts ‘Mission’
‘Mission Parivartan’ kickstarts
SHWETA DESAI
OCTOBER 15 F OR the last 20 years, Anil Madhve has been working as a marker
at the octroi nakas in the city. Standing in the scorching sun, bearing the
heat and rain – depending on the season – his job requires him to direct the
vehicles laden with goods and manage the traffic. “Every vehicle passing the
naka is checked by markers and the documents are registered for the payment
of the octroi duty. If we hold up the vehicles for enquiry, then people in
the queue think we are asking for money and are corrupt, no one understands
the toil,” says Madhve explaining his job. Taking into consideration the
amount of hard work they put in, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation
(BMC) has, for the first time, decided to train 1,200 grassroot level
workers like Madhve.
Titled ‘Mission Parivartan’, the civic administration is labeling the
training, which began on Monday, as a stress buster for the employees of the
assessment and collection department of the Octroi which is the largest
income earning department of the BMC – Rs 6,000 crore, 50 per cent of the
total budget.
The 18-day training session will train markers, octroi inspectors,
supervising inspectors, superintendents, assistant assessor and collectors.
Improving health, self relaxation techniques, food to be taken during night
shift to remain awake and alert, personality development and transparent
administration and importance of complaints lodged by citizens are some of
the aspects that will be tackled during the training. On the last days of
the training, the workers will also be allowed to get their wives for family
counseling.
“We want to treat you as individuals and not as workers. Do not think that
the camp is to train you for increasing the revenue of the BMC; we know that
all of you are good at your job. So during the training there will be no
talk of ‘revenue’ and it will be only about you,” said joint municipal
commissioner (improvements) V Radha while addressing the workers. She added
that to bring in a change in the ‘system’ the administration has to work
from the ‘bottom’.
“If the change is from bottom up then there will be a change in the entire
system,” she said.
Additional Municipal Commissioner (projects) Manu Kumar Shrivastava said,
“Don’t take your work as orders from seniors but treat it with love and
interest.” He advised the workers to read inspirational books like ‘The Monk
who sold his Ferrari’, ‘Who moved my cheese’ and ‘Idiot’s guide to stress
management.’ This is for the first time that high ranking officers like
Shrivastava and Radha had spoken to an audience comprising workers at the
nakas directly on a platform of training camp. “It is good that we are being
involved in such training camps. Till now, only higher administrative staff
sitting in civic offices were trained, no one ever thought about us,” said
Rajesh Damodar currently, a marker at the Dadar station octroi naka.
Radha said that the training camp was not only organised to develop a sense
of pride amongst the employees but also to prepare them for changes.
“The decision on scrapping octroi in Maharashtra is still hanging in
balance. Moreover, there are many administrative changes like
computerisation and advanced technology, which the octroi employees are to
be ready for,” she said.
Publication : IE; Section : MN; Pg : 3; Date : 15/10/07
URL :
http://70.86.150.130/indianexpress/ArticleText.aspx?article=16_10_2007_523_003