The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) plans to use artificial intelligence (AI) to understand public sentiment on civic matters and improve its performance in meeting citizens' expectations.
The PMC offers multiple platforms for residents to voice their concerns about civic issues, allowing them to file complaints in writing or via social media. Through its 'PMC Care' system, the civic body facilitates communication with citizens on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, X, and other platforms.
“The PMC gets thousands of communications every day from citizens on civic issues through social media. Thus, the idea of analysing public sentiments on social media will help civic administration understand the public needs and improve performance to deliver services as per the needs of citizens,” said Rahul Jagtap, incharge of the civic information technology (IT) department.
The initiative is being tested for three months and will be executed by a private agency. If successful, it will be extended. In addition to the PMC's social media accounts, analysis input will also be gathered from other Pune-related platforms, such as newspapers and YouTube channels.
The private agency will provide a weekly report for three months, analyzing at least 1,000 posts and 30,000 comments with software tools. It will also oversee all social media accounts related to Pune and identify and track the most viral narratives concerning the PMC, he stated.
The PMC has opted to employ an AI chatbot to review government resolutions related to the PMC, as well as all resolutions from the state and union urban development department, and PMC circulars, to enhance the speed and efficiency of service delivery by the Pune civic body. “This will enable the PMC to identify the relevant resolutions that could be implemented faster and with accuracy,” he said.