At some govt. offices in Kochi, mobiles are now a strict no-no

Reams of paper may have been used in advising the layman how he ought to use his mobile phone while at work, in a public place and/or in any particular situation; however a circular issued by the Kerala government to government offices has now changed the way work will happen across government offices in Kochi. Government offices across Kochi have been, according to a report by the Times of India following the pointers mentioned in the state government circular restricting the use of mobile phones, while at work to the T. Reportedly, many government employees across the city switched off their phones throughout the day, and if the report is anything to go by then many officials at the collectorate even went as far as taking efforts to avoid making conversations on the phone, while there were others who discussed the circular at length. The government circular, reportedly was a move to curb the use of mobile phones in offices for personal reasons, and allowed the use during emergencies. However, the report quoted E K Jayaprakash, an auto consultant, who visited RTO's office as saying, "The order is a step in the right direction because it will bring relief to people who wait for hours in offices for many purposes. But it is difficult to know whether the officer is using mobile phone for official or personal purposes."

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Reportedly, the move to curb the use of mobile phones in offices in the state came after the government received a slew of complaints from customers, who stated that government employees did not pay much attention to them, since they would be busy attending to personal calls on their mobile phones. Speaking on the issue, Additional District Magistrate Mohandas Pillai stated that government officials used their mobile phones in offices for professional reasons only. He added that it is a convinient mode to follow, if they need to contact their fellow officials quickly. Pillai further stated that, "A monitoring mechanism would be formalized after discussing with the district collector to ensure that officials don't use mobile phones during business hours."

However, officials at the taluk office, according to this report were seen talking and texting on their mobile phones. These officials, adds the report state that the government allows them to use mobile phones during emergency situations.

What do you think of these new rules? Would you like to see a similar move across other government offices in the country? Do let us know your views in the comments section below.