Hisar public health officer fined; senior engineers warned

The Haryana Right to Service (RTS) Commission has imposed a token fine of Rs 3,000 on a Divisional Officer-cum-Sub Divisional Engineer of the Public Health Engineering Department for failing to provide a service within the stipulated time and for negligence in addressing a complaint. The officer must also pay Rs 3,000 as token compensation to the complainant.

The complainant, a Hisar resident, told the Commission that his family faced a severe shortage of water supply this year as well as last summer. Last year, after the Commission’s intervention, the water pipeline was replaced. However, during April, May, and June this year, “there was practically no water supply,” he said, forcing them to purchase drinking water.

He further alleged that the XEN and SE “disposed of the appeals in an incorrect manner and without giving us an opportunity to be heard.” He urged the Commission to ensure water supply to his home as per prescribed standards, calling water “a basic necessity for every individual.”

A Commission spokesperson said the inquiry found that the officer concerned marked the service as completed beyond the RTS Act time limit, and “the reply was sent without actually resolving the complaint.” The spokesperson noted that all departmental officers had already been trained for effective complaint resolution. “Despite this, appeals were decided without hearings and the necessary action,” the spokesperson added.