KSPCB clueless about its own SMS service

The number 98451-90841 was released on Friday to receive complaints related to pollution in the City and across the State.

But a visit to the KSPCB head office here in the City on Saturday revealed the level of ignorance and ambiguity within the office about the functioning of the service.

When Deccan Herald tried to reach the member secretary of the Pollution Control Board to find out how the facility will prove beneficial to people, KSPCB staff said the official and the assistant engineer in-charge of the project were on long leave.

KSPCB Chief Engineer Simha was also unsure about the system and its functioning, and was dependent on the absentee assistant engineer to provide details. The Public Relations Officer too was unable to clarify about the functioning of the SMS complaint system.

Lack of coordination

The absence of personnel to provide requisite information and the inability of senior officials to clarify pertinent issues about the system showed the lack of coordination and communication within the KSPCB.

Furthermore, when this reporter sent a complaint to the SMS service, no response or follow-up was received.

While their phone helplines have been in use for a while now, the SMS service is an addition to the plethora of complaint registry systems in the KSPCB. Only, this particular system does not appear to function.