Public Grievances Mechanism and the DPG

The Directorate of Public Grievances (DPG) was set up in 1988 to entertain grievances from the public after they fail to get satisfactory redress from the ministry/department concerned within a reasonable time. DPG is located under Cabinet Secretariat, GOI. 

It is thus, an office of the last resort for a redress of grievances relating to sectors in its purview. The sectors in DPG’s purview are those with extensive public interface. Certain subjects are outside the purview of DPG.

Organizations under DPG’s purview are:-

• Department of Posts
• Department of Telecommunication
• Ministry of Railways
• Department of Financial Services (Banking and Insurance)
• National Small Savings Scheme: Department of Economic Affairs
• Ministry of Urban Development (DDA, L&DO, CPWD)
• Ministry of Road Transport & Highways
• Ministry of Shipping, Ministry of Civil Aviation
• Regional Passport Authorities (MEA)
• Ministry of Labour
• Employees’ Provident Fund Organization
• Employees’ State Insurance Corporation - Hospitals and Dispensaries
• CGHS: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
• Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas, Ministry of HRD
• Central Universities, Kendriya Vidyalaya
• Navodaya Vidyalaya
• National Institute of Open Learning
• Central Board of Secondary Education
• Ministry of Tourism
• Ministry of Youth Affairs.
• Deemed Universities (Central)

Subjects outside the purview of DPG are:

• Policy matters
• Matters that are subjudice
• Grievances disposed of at the level of the concerned Minister
• Service matters (except those relating to payment of terminal benefits)
• Commercial contracts. 

Mechanism

Grievance can be lodged with DPG through post, email or by lodging the complaint online on the portal. The cases received offline are entered in the system and, thereafter, all cases are handled using PGRAAMS application.

Each grievance is first scrutinized to see if it relates to a sector in DPG's purview.

Those concerning the sectors outside the purview of the DPG are forwarded to the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances for appropriate disposal, under intimation to the complainants.

The remaining grievances are then assessed to ascertain whether the issue involved is grave and whether the concerned ministry/department has been given an opportunity to redress the grievance. 

The grievances of grave nature which are either long pending or where the redress is not forthcoming from concerned service organisation/ministry are taken up for detailed examination. These cases are followed upto a logical and reasonable conclusion. 

Other cases are transferred to the concerned ministry for appropriate action. 

When DPG seeks comments, the department or organization is expected to examine the matter and give a reply within thirty days. 

After receipt of comments, DPG may, if considered necessary, seek further information to ensure that the grievance is dealt with in a fair and objective manner by the department or organization and confirmation of satisfactory redress of the grievance is also sought from the complainant before closure. 

During 2015-16, 10357 grievances were received in DPG pertaining to sectors in its purview, out of which 595 cases were taken up taking the total number of taken up cases to 1372. 

Out of the 1372 taken up cases, 846 were disposed with 745 in favour of the complainant. 

Thus approximately 88 per cent of the taken up cases were resolved. 

In addition, 1,782 grievances were transferred to the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances. 

Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances is one of the three departments under the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions.