The Policy on Public Grievances Redressal

PUNJAB GOVT. GAZ. (EXTRA), APRIL 6, 2021
(CHTR 16, 1943 SAKA)
EXTRAORDINARY EXTRAORDINARYEXTRAORDINARY EXTRAORDINARYEXTRAORDINARY
Published by Authority Published by AuthorityPublished by Authority Published by AuthorityPublished by Authority
CHANDIGARH, TUESDAY , APRIL 6, 2021
(CHAITRA 16, 1943 SAKA)
( xlvi )
LEGISLATIVE  SUPPLEMENT
Contents Pages
Part - I Acts
1. The Punjab Anti Red Tape Act, 2021.
(Punjab Act No. 14 of 2021).
2. The Punjab Bureau of Investment
Promotion (Amendment) Act, 2021.
(Punjab Act No. 15 of 2021).
Part - II Ordinances
Nil
Part - III Delegated Legislation
Nil
Part - IV Correction  Slips,  Republications and
Replacements
                         Nil
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..    115-120
..    121-124
PUNJAB GOVT. GAZ. (EXTRA), APRIL 6, 2021
(CHTR 16, 1943 SAKA)
PART I
GOVERNMENT OF PUNJAB
DEPARTMENT OF LEGAL AND LEGISLATIVE AFFAIRS, PUNJAB
NOTIFICATION
The 6th April, 2021
No. 14-Leg./2021.-The following Act of the Legislature of the State of
Punjab received the assent of the Governor of Punjab on the 26th day of
March, 2021, is hereby published for general information:-
THE PUNJAB ANTI RED TAPE ACT, 2021
(Punjab Act No. 14 of 2021)
AN
 ACT
115
Short title and
commencement.
Applicability.
to eliminate Red Tape and promote effective administration of public
affairs and to reduce the cost and burden of compliances on the citizens and
businesses, through simplified, trust based procedures that shall expedite
processes and make governance efficient and for the matters connected
therewith or incidental thereto.
BE it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Punjab in the Seventy-
second Year of the Republic of India, as follows:-
1. (1)  This Act may be called the Punjab Anti Red Tape Act, 2021.
(2) It shall come into force on and with effect from the date of its
publication in the Official Gazette.
2. This Act shall apply to-
(a) all offices of the departments of the Government of Punjab
and its attached or subordinate offices including all units of
local self Government by whatever name called;
(b) any Public Sector Enterprise owned or controlled by the
Government of Punjab;
(c) any entity established or constituted by the Constitution of
India or an Act of Parliament, whose expenditure incurred
from the Consolidated Fund of the State;
(d) any entity or Board or Corporation or Authority or Society or
Trust or Commission or Autonomous Body (by whatever name
called) established or  constituted by an Act of the State
Legislature;
(e) any  entity  that  receives  grant  or  financial  aid  out  of  the
PUNJAB GOVT. GAZ. (EXTRA), APRIL 6, 2021
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Consolidated Fund of the State or retains any levy or user
charges or fees collected from the public after being authorized
to do so by the State Government and is owned or controlled
or managed by the State Government; and
(f) any other entity which the State Government may, by
notification, specify to be designated as such for the purpose
of  this Act, being an entity that has been designated to provide
services to the public on behalf of the State Government:
Provided that all the offices or organizations
performing judicial, quasi-judicial and legislative functions are
excluded from the application of this Act to the extent of
performance of such functions.
3. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,-
(a) "entity" means entity as specified  in section 2;
(b) "G2B Service" means the service provided by an entity to
businesses involving requests or applications (whether online
or offline) for any benefit, privilege, right, permit, reward,
license, concession or for any modification, renewal or
extension of the enumerated applications or requests which
are acted upon in the ordinary course of business of the entity
concerned;
(c) "G2C Service" means the service provided by an entity to
citizens involving requests or applications (whether online or
offline) for any benefit, privilege, right, permit, reward, license,
concession or for any modification, renewal or extension of
the enumerated applications or requests which are acted upon
in the ordinary course of business of the entity concerned;
(d) "Government" means the Government of Punjab in the
Department of Governance Reforms and Public Grievances;
(e) "External Intermediaries" means any individual or agency not
officially involved in the delivery of the service and who is not
Definitions.
PUNJAB GOVT. GAZ. (EXTRA), APRIL 6, 2021
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authorized by the State Government but who derives or
attempts to derive pecuniary gain or other consideration by
facilitating the completion of transactions;
(f) "Official or Service Provider" means a person employed or
deployed in an entity required to perform specific duties and
responsibilities related to the provisioning of G2B or G2C
Service;
(g) "prescribed" means prescribed  by rules made under this Act;
and
(h) "Process Re-engineering" means the redesign or modification
of State Government systems,  processes and procedures to
achieve improvements in efficiency, processing times and
quality of service at optimal cost.
4. All entities shall within a period of six months from the date of
commencement of this Act, undertake a fresh re-engineering of their processes
and systems to reduce the burden of compliances by at  least  fifty percent
(50%) or as may be prescribed.
5. All entities, which provide G2B or G2C Services shall regularly
undertake as prescribed, time and motion studies, performance analysis and
undergo evaluation for the purpose of improvement of their systems,
simplification of procedures and processes and re-engineer the same to reduce
the processing times, cost and burden of compliances to businesses and citizens.
6. All entities shall within a period of one year from the date of
commencement of this Act, ensure that all the G2B and G2C Services provided
by them are also available Online:
Provided that the Government, for reasons to be recorded in writing,
exempt online delivery of a particular G2B and G2C Service.
7. All entities shall within a period of six months from the date of
commencement of this Act, prescribe a period, upon the completion of which
and in the event of  failure to act on an application or request for a renewal of
a license, permit or authority shall be deemed to have been approved, for a
Simplifying
processes
for G2B
and G2C
Services.
Mandatory
online delivery
for G2B and
G2C Services.
Deemed
extension.
PUNJAB GOVT. GAZ. (EXTRA), APRIL 6, 2021
(CHTR 16, 1943 SAKA)
prescribed period until a decision or resolution is rendered on such application
or request for renewal:
Provided  that the deemed extension shall not apply when the permit,
license or authority covers activities, which pose danger to public health, public
safety, public morals or to public policy including, but not limited to, natural
resource extraction activities:
Provided further that the application or request submitted is complete
in all respects, including the submission of payable fees and an undertaking  by
the applicant to comply with all provisions of applicable Acts or rules, policies,
guidelines framed thereunder, and its liability in case of non-compliance thereof.
The deemed extension shall, for all intents and purposes, carry the
weight of an approval granted by the entity under the relevant  Acts or  rules,
policies, guidelines framed thereunder.
8. All entities shall within the period prescribed ensure that all in-person
inspections that may be required under any Acts, rules or policies in respect of
any G2B and G2C Services delivery shall be  removed and  replaced by trust
based self-declarations or third-party inspections:
Provided that the Government, for reasons to be recorded in writing,
with an objective checklist or parameters being inspected, may allow the
continuation of any such in-person inspection in respect of any particular G2B
and G2C Services.
9. All entities shall define their respective services processes to be known
as the 'Promise to Serve' in the form of information boards which should be
posted at the main entrance of offices or at the most conspicuous place, in the
form of published materials or on the website of the entity and the State
Government written in Punjabi and English containing the following details,
namely:-
(a) the procedure to obtain a particular service (both through online
and offline mode);
(b) the person responsible for each step;
Promise to
serve.
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PUNJAB GOVT. GAZ. (EXTRA), APRIL 6, 2021
(CHTR 16, 1943 SAKA)
(c) the maximum time to conclude the process;
(d) the documents to be presented by the citizen or business, if
necessary;
(e) the amount of fees, if necessary; and
(f) the procedure and the authority for filling complaints.
10. All external intermediaries shall be persona non grata and all entities
shall take effective steps within the time prescribed to ensure that no external
intermediaries are involved in the supply of G2B and G2C Services.
11. Any violation of the provisions of this Act including collusion with
external intermediaries shall make the concerned official of the State
Government and the entities, liable for disciplinary proceedings for the major
punishment as applicable  to him as per the terms and conditions of his service
rules:
Provided that any individual hired on contract, after giving an opportunity
of being heard and upon proved of committed a violation under this Act, shall
be dismissed and be relieved from his duties  immediately:
Provided further that an employee of an authorized service provider
of G2B or G2C Services, after giving an opportunity of being heard, shall upon
proved of committed a violation under this Act, be dismissed  by his employer
and relieved by him from his duties immediately, and further the service provider
shall impose a fine not exceeding rupees fifty thousand (rupees 50,000) in
each case of  violation, so proved.
12. No suit, prosecution or other legal proceedings shall lie against the
Government or its authorities, officers or any employee of the Government for
anything which is done or intended to be done in good faith under this Act or
the rules or the regulations made thereunder.
13. If any difficulty arises in giving effect to any provisions of this Act, the
Government may,  by a general or a special order published in the Official
Gazette, make such provisions not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act
or the rules or regulations made thereunder, as may be necessary or expedient
for the purpose of removing the said difficulty.
External
Intermediaries-
Persona Non
Grata.
Penalties.
Protection of
action taken in
good faith.
Removal of
difficulties.
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PUNJAB GOVT. GAZ. (EXTRA), APRIL 6, 2021
(CHTR 16, 1943 SAKA)
14. (1) The Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette,
make rules to carry out the purposes of this Act.
(2) Every rule made by the Government  under this Act, shall be
laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before the House of the State Legislature,
while it is in session, for a total period of ten days, which may be comprised in
one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before the expiry of
the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions
aforesaid, the House agrees in making any modification in the rules or the
House agrees that the rule should not be made, the rule shall thereafter have
effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be.
However, any such  modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to
the validity of anything  previously done under that rule.
Power to
make
rules.
S.K. AGGARWAL,
Secretary to Government of Punjab,
Department of Legal and Legislative Affairs.
2268/4-2021/Pb. Govt. Press, S.A.S. Nagar
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