Greater Chennai Corporation to launch platform with ChatBot to improve grievance redressal services

GCC to launch modern citizen engagement platform with ChatBot to improve services to residents. Automation of monitoring broken calls, integration of call centre, grievance redressal & social media. Platform expected to shorten response time to public health, education, infrastructure & welfare issues.

The Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) will launch a modern citizen engagement platform this month with ChatBot to improve services to residents who seek help from officials to resolve civic issues.

The modernised platform is expected to be a step towards utilising aspects such as artificial intelligence systems to enhance communication between officials and residents. “It will be completed next week. Final implementation is expected in 15 days. The quality of service will improve. Residents will also be able to directly contact officials,” said an official.

GCC officials said the major difference between the old 1913 helpline and the new platform was the automation of monitoring broken calls from residents. For instance, more than 2% of the calls made to helpline 1913 had been classified as broken calls. Currently, the GCC monitored these by manually collecting the details of residents since the call centre and grievance redressal platforms are separate.

“Now, we contact residents after manually collecting the data. After the modernisation, this process will be automated. The call centre, grievance redressal and social media components will be integrated. The Integrated Command and Control Centre will also play a major role,” an official said.

The 1913 helpline call centre was managed by 10 persons, but this number was increased to 50 during the last northeast monsoon. As the modern citizen engagement platform is expected to be launched ahead of the upcoming northeast monsoon, the services for residents is likely to improve in the next three months.

More than 89 lakh residents of the 426-sq.km GCC rely on 10 persons at the helpline call centre or other social media to register complaints, and at least 500 complaints are registered every day during the monsoon. The modern citizen engagement platform is expected to shorten the civic body’s response time to issues pertaining to public health, education, infrastructure development, and welfare measures.