Report by OD bureau; Bhubaneswar: Odisha Cabinet has approves Citizen Charter Bill, government to provide 69 services by 10 departments. The state cabinet under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Naveen Patnak today discussed about 21 proposals.

Odisha Right to Public Service Bill-2012 was approved by the state cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. The state cabinet today also approves amendment in Odisha Gram panchayat Act- 1964, amendment in Odisha Municipal Corporation Act, amendment in Wild Life Protection Act-1974, amendment to the Odisha Hindu Religious Endowment Act  and others. The state cabinet also approved that Panchayats can collect property taxes.

The Cabinet decided to exempt 5 percent VAT from fly ash brick, 8 percent from construction equipments like crane and wheel loader. The Cabinet decided to merge the Bhubaneswar Urban Cooperative Bank with the Pune-based Cosmos Cooperative Bank. 

Among others, the Cabinet decided to introduce of one time settlement (OTS) for defaulters like the Odisha SC and ST Development Finance Corporation and Odisha Backward Classes Development Finance Corporation, amendment in the Municipal Corporation Act-2003, Odisha Taxation and Accounts Service and compensation towards crop loss, and waiver of land premium for the new bus stand in Angul.

Under the Odisha Right to Public Service Bill the citizens would have the right to get particular services within the stipulated time period. The Bill also has provision of penalty for officials for not meeting the time frame fixed for particular service.

While the initial penalty will be Rs 500, the defaulting official would have to pay Rs 250 per day after expiry of the fixed time frame, he said.

There will be designated authority, appellate authority and revision authority to decided whether any applicant is harassed by the officials.