Partnership with ‘Samagra’ to Make Municipal Services Faster and More Efficient
Mumbai, October 6: ‘Participate Mumbai’ is not merely a platform for mobilising Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds, but a collaborative platform where the government, municipal corporation, corporate sector and social organisations can come together to work for the city’s development, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said.
He said the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Samagra would help improve the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s service delivery system, simplify administrative processes and enhance efficiency. Together, the two initiatives will give Mumbai’s development a stronger foundation of citizen participation and responsive administration, he added.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has launched ‘Participate Mumbai’, a new digital partnership platform aimed at increasing the participation of citizens, businesses, non-governmental organisations and experts in the city’s development process.
The platform was formally launched and an MoU with Samagra for improving municipal service delivery, simplifying administrative procedure]s and enhancing efficiency was exchanged at the BMC headquarters in Mumbai. Chief Minister Fadnavis was speaking on the occasion.
Skills, Employment, Entrepreneurship and Innovation Minister and Mumbai Suburban District Guardian Minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha, Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde, Deputy Mayor Sanjay Ghadi, Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide, along with civic officials, corporators and representatives from the corporate and voluntary sectors, were present.
‘Participate Mumbai’ as a Platform for Public Participation
Chief Minister Fadnavis said ‘Participate Mumbai’ is not simply a platform for securing CSR funding, but an initiative based on the principle of “what can we achieve together for the last person in society?”
Information about various municipal projects requiring partnerships will be made available on the platform. Companies, NGOs and citizens interested in working in areas such as education, healthcare, water, employment, environment, parks, beautification and poverty alleviation will be able to select projects according to their interests.
Organisations that wish to work in a specific area will also be able to propose their own initiatives through the platform. This will help bridge the gap between the municipal administration, social organisations and the corporate sector and accelerate development projects, Fadnavis said.
‘In CSR, Impact Matters More Than Money’
The Chief Minister stressed that in CSR initiatives, the amount of money spent is less important than the public benefit and measurable impact generated through that spending.
Organisations working through CSR can bring new technologies, modern management practices, effective monitoring systems and flexible approaches to governance. Government systems often face limitations because of traditional administrative procedures. Bringing government agencies and CSR partners together can therefore result in more effective implementation, he said.
Focus Needed on Malnutrition in Mumbai
Fadnavis said the BMC has undertaken significant work in infrastructure development, but there is also a need for more effective interventions in education, healthcare and nutrition.
Problems such as malnutrition, stunting and wasting among children continue to be seen in some parts of the city, particularly in slums and economically disadvantaged communities. CSR partnerships should be effectively utilised to ensure that children in these areas have access to adequate nutrition, he said.
Nutrition is directly linked to children’s brain development, educational performance and immunity. Effective interventions in this area can therefore have a long-term impact on the development of the next generation, Fadnavis added.
Administrative Processes to Be Re-engineered with ‘Samagra’
The MoU with Samagra is an important step towards making the BMC administration more efficient, transparent and citizen-centric, Fadnavis said.
He stressed the need to update government processes in line with changing times. Many administrative procedures were designed years ago and continue to be implemented in the same manner, even though citizens today expect immediate services and faster resolution of their problems.
There is therefore a need for business process re-engineering by eliminating unnecessary stages in administrative procedures, he said.
The state government had attempted to make around 1,100 services available online to citizens. However, an analysis showed that nearly 200 of these services were not actually being used by citizens. It was subsequently found that improving the delivery processes of around 45 to 47 of the most widely used services and schemes could enable faster and better services for nearly 90 per cent of citizens.
The restructuring of these processes is now in its final stage and will be implemented shortly, Fadnavis said.
AI to Transform Building Permission Process
The BMC’s building department has introduced an artificial intelligence-based system to scrutinise building plans.
Fadnavis said the objective should be to progressively reduce human intervention in the process, eventually moving towards a system with minimal or zero human intervention wherever feasible. Such reforms would improve the ease of doing business in Mumbai.
He said the administration must continuously adapt to changing circumstances and stressed the need to move away from a mindset that says, “We have been following this process for years; who can teach us anything new?”
Citizen Participation Given an Institutional Framework: Mayor Ritu Tawde
Mayor Ritu Tawde described the launch of ‘Participate Mumbai’ and the agreement with Samagra as an important milestone in Mumbai’s administrative history.
She said the initiative would give institutional shape to citizen participation in the city’s development. Instead of viewing administration and citizens as two separate entities, the collective strength of Mumbaikars should become a new identity for the city’s development, she said.
CSR should not merely be about providing funds but should become a means of creating “change, not just cheques,” Tawde said. ‘Participate Mumbai’ will connect the willingness and capabilities of industries, organisations, NGOs and citizens to contribute to the city with the BMC’s requirements.
She emphasised that the municipal administration must be responsive and efficient so that ordinary citizens do not have to make repeated visits to municipal offices, their complaints are resolved within a reasonable timeframe, and they receive transparent and secure services.
Administrative Capacity and Service Delivery to Be Strengthened: Commissioner Ashwini Bhide
Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide said that for a city with a population of more than 20 million, continuous improvement in the administrative system is essential to provide citizen-centric, transparent and speedy services.
Through ‘Participate Mumbai’, industries, corporate organisations, NGOs, experts and citizens will be able to participate in various municipal projects. Participation may take the form of financial support, material assistance, expert knowledge or volunteering, she said.
The BMC is also working towards developing systems to assess the performance of different departments and wards and undertake comparative reviews.
While ‘Participate Mumbai’ will connect external expertise, resources and capabilities with Mumbai’s needs, the partnership with Samagra will strengthen the BMC’s internal administrative capacity and service delivery systems, Bhide said.
Deputy Mayor Sanjay Ghadi proposed the vote of thanks. During the event, Chief Minister Fadnavis unveiled information brochures on the ‘Participate Mumbai’ and Samagra initiatives.
As part of the event, Hindustan Unilever handed over ₹25 crore in CSR funding to the BMC for the development of 10 new facility centres in Mumbai.