PMC Ignored My Complaint. What Can I Do?

You filed the complaint. You got a reference number. Seven days passed. Fourteen. The issue is still there. Then the app marked it closed.

This happens more often than PMC will acknowledge. Here is exactly what to do.

Step 1 — Re-file with your original reference number

Do not start fresh. Starting fresh loses your complaint history.

Go back to the same channel you used — PMC Care app, pgrs.punecorporation.org, or the helpline at 1800-233-4040.

Re-file. In the description, write:

"Re-filing. Original complaint number [X], filed on [date]. Issue unresolved. Requesting escalation."

This creates a paper trail that links your new complaint to the original. Ward offices are required to review complaints that cite a previous unresolved reference number.

Note the new reference number.

Step 2 — Escalate to your ward office in person

Phone complaints and app complaints reach the same queue. They can be dismissed without accountability.

A visit to your ward office is harder to ignore.

Find your ward office: visit pmc.gov.in and search your area, or check your property tax bill for your ward number.

What to bring:

• Printed copy of your original complaint with reference number
• One clear photograph of the unresolved issue with date visible
• A written note requesting the name of the officer responsible for your complaint category

Ask for a written acknowledgment of your escalation. If they will not provide one — note the date, time, and name of whoever you spoke to.

Step 3 — File an RTI

The Right to Information Act gives every Indian citizen the right to request documents from government bodies.

If your complaint has been closed without action, you can file an RTI asking PMC to provide:

"Certified copies of all action taken reports for complaint number [X] filed on [date] regarding [issue description] at [location]."

File at: rtionline.gov.in

Address to: Public Information Officer, Pune Municipal Corporation

PMC must respond within 30 days of receiving the RTI. A non-response or unsatisfactory response can be escalated to the State Information Commissioner.

RTI is the nuclear option. It works. Most complaints get resolved before the response is due.

Step 4 — Raise it on Opinify with your neighbours

One complaint from one person is easy to dismiss. Twelve complaints from the same street are not.

Opinify is a free app for Pune residents. When you raise an issue on Opinify, it appears on a public map. Your neighbours can add their reports to the same location — each one documented with photograph and GPS coordinates.

When enough residents report the same issue from the same location, it becomes aggregated evidence. NGOs and civic organisations active on Opinify are notified and can take direct action.

The pothole near Nal Stop in Kothrud was raised by 47 residents on Opinify. Poonawal Foundation fixed it in 4 days.

Your complaint alone has limited leverage. Your complaint plus twelve neighbours is a different problem for whoever is responsible for ignoring it.

Step 5 — Make it public

Public pressure is not a substitute for formal escalation. It is a supplement.

Tag @PMCPune on Twitter or X with:

• A clear photograph of the unresolved issue
• Your original complaint reference number
• The date it was filed
• The date it was marked closed without action

Post between 9am and 11am on weekdays. Tuesday through Thursday see the most engagement from official accounts.

Do not post without the reference number. The reference number proves this is a documented complaint — not an accusation.

What Not To Do

Do not abandon the complaint. Abandoned complaints validate the closure.

Do not file multiple simultaneous complaints from scratch on different platforms. This fragments your documentation and makes it easier for the issue to fall through gaps.

Do not accept a closure without an explanation. A complaint closed with "action taken" and no evidence of action taken is a legitimate basis for an RTI.

The Honest Assessment

PMC receives thousands of complaints per week. Ward offices are understaffed and under-resourced. Most closures without action are not malicious — they are the result of a broken system with no accountability mechanism for individual complaints.

The steps above work because they introduce accountability at each stage.

• Re-filing introduces a paper trail.
• A ward visit introduces a face.
• An RTI introduces a legal obligation.
• Opinify introduces community pressure.
• Social media introduces public scrutiny.

Use them in that order. Most complaints are resolved before step 5.

Opinify is a free app for Pune residents to raise civic issues and track whether they get resolved. opinify.co.in