Kathmandu, December 19

The performance of as many as six ministries and three central-level government agencies were below average in settling complaints lodged with Hello Sarkar, a grievance-hearing mechanism of the government.

According to the hotline set up at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministries, they settled less than 50 per cent of public complaints forwarded to them by Hello Sarkar for necessary action in November.

Earlier, the OPMCM had instructed ministries and other government agencies to settle at least 50 per cent of complaints. Those who have performed below par have been directed to act on public complaints more seriously.

OPMCM Secertary Shreedhar Sapkota said a total 464 complaints, 90 of them via Facebook, were lodged with Hello Sarkar in November.

Of them, 305 (67 per cent) complaints have been settled. Hello Sarkar resolved nine complaints on its own and forwarded others to the concerned ministries and government agencies.

The ministries and agencies, which settled less than 50 per cent public complaints in November, are the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Urban Development, Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development, Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment, Secretariat of the National Planning Commission, Public Procurement Monitoring Office and Higher Secondary Education Board.

However, eight ministries and one central-level government agencies managed to resolve all complaints forwarded to them. They are the Ministry of Agricultural Development, Ministry of Peace and reconstruction, Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Ministry of Forests and Soil Conservation, Ministry of Youth and Sports, Ministry of Education, Ministry of General Administration, Ministry of Cooperative and Poverty Alleviation and National Vigilance Centre.

Meanwhile, the OPMCM said 36,636 (approximately 91 per cent) out of 40,794 complaints registered with the hotline were resolved since the hotline was set up in November 2011. Most of the complaints lodged with Hello Sarkar in recent times are related to shortage of fuel and cooking gas, black marketing, irregularities in relief distribution to earthquake survivors, load-shedding, irregular drinking water supply, corruption, foreign employment fraud, corruption etc.