Eight lakh calls in 10 days to check whether government schemes are doing well

This herculean exercise was done using almost 800 call agents of the BSNL which was to identify the districts which have done well in implementation of the four major schemes — Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna (PMJDY), Swachh Bharat (Gramin), Swachh Vidhyalaya and Soil Health Card

New Delhi, April 5: Eight lakh calls in 10 days. Sounds bizarre? Yes that’s what the Narendra Modi government has done to seek answers for few quick questions as ground check for the implementation of its key schemes.

This herculean exercise was done using almost 800 call agents of the BSNL which was to identify the districts which have done well in implementation of the four major schemes — Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna (PMJDY), Swachh Bharat (Gramin), Swachh Vidhyalaya and Soil Health Card. Based on the feedback from the citizens, the Prime Minister will award the best district on April 21. The prize will be Rs 10 lakh each. (Also Read: BJP targets Sonia Gandhi on black money issue)

According to government officials, this was Prime Minister’s idea in early last month to find out the best district when it came to implementation of the priority schemes. After the calls were made and the questionnaires of 8-10 points were collected, Cabinet secretary PK Sinha went through the data which was initiated in double time within three weeks of Modi’s suggestions.

It is learnt that 800 call agents were hired to make calls to over 7.6 lakh people over 10 days in February-March which had answers as ‘yes’ or ‘no’. “This must be the biggest exercise carried out by any central or state government ever in such a short time span to get citizen feedback. The improvements suggested by the beneficiaries in itself is a very important input for bettering the schemes further,” a senior Cabinet Secretariat, on the condition of anonymity, was quoted as saying by the Economic Times.