Management of municipal services: effectiveness of comprehensive complaint redressal system (CCRS) for the urban poor
摘要
The adoption of technology-enabled grievance redressal systems is steadily rising as a means to improve urban service delivery. This study assesses the effectiveness of the Comprehensive Complaint Redressal System (CCRS) in addressing municipal service issues faced by the urban poor in three slums of Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India. The objectives of the study were to identify key service delivery problems, examine patterns of grievance registration and resolution, and to evaluate the accessibility and effectiveness of technology-enabled redressal mechanisms for the urban poor. Using a mixed-methods approach the study draws on a survey of 90 residents and interviews with community members and ward-level stakeholders. The analysis focuses on service delivery challenges, modes of grievance registration, and complaint resolution outcomes. Findings show that water supply, water quality, and drainage are the most commonly reported problems. More than half of the respondents had never registered a complaint, and among those who had, most reported unresolved grievances. Despite the availability of multiple digital complaint channels, the urban poor largely depend on offline and intermediary-based mechanisms due to limited access, low awareness, and exclusionary system design. The study concludes that while CCRS offers technological solutions, it remains insufficiently inclusive to address the service delivery needs of the urban poor.