Seating arrangement for complainants at the janata durbar on Thursday. Picture by Deepak Kumar

Babita Kumari (33) from Masaurhi block was delighted to see chairs outside district magistrate N. Saravana Kumar’s chamber at the Patna collectorate.

The new seating arrangements made the district administration’s concern for complainants evident on Thursday.

On her earlier visit, Babita had to strain her legs for at least half-an-hour before she could hand over her application to the district magistrate. However, Thursday’s durbar visit seemed to be a hassle-free exercise for the applicants.

“Earlier, it was tiring and uncomfortable to stand and await my turn, which could come after over half-an-hour. But now I want to thank DM saheb for making the seating arrangements,” said Babita.

The district magistrate’s chamber is located on the first floor of the Patna collectorate and complainants used to stand in the lobby. They would jostle with each other to try and stay ahead in the queue, triggering chaos. Even the staff deputed outside the magistrate’s chamber used to have a tough time managing them.

Praising the district magistrate’s decision, another complainant from Danapur, Sudeer Kumar (38), said: “Ahh, it’s like heaven sitting on a chair. Earlier, we used to struggle to stand in this crowded lobby. Even the staff used to shout at us, asking us to keep quiet while queuing up.”

Kumar said: “I found it difficult to write while standing, whenever I had to make corrections in my application.” The applicants had earlier lodged complaints in this regard.

However, Thursday’s picture was totally different. All the complainants were found sitting quietly in the lobby and even the staff remained quiet. The district magistrate used to ask the staff about the clamour outside the chamber.

Asked about starting such an initiative for the complainants, the district magistrate said: “It was important to have such a practice over here. I must thank you people who raised this issue for the convenience of complainants.”