Replying to a Kisan Credit Card grievance within 48 hours
A Kisan Credit Card customer, Ms Rekha Yadav, applied on 3 June for renewal of her 1.80 lakh limit. Renewal was delayed because the branch awaited land-record verification from the tehsil office, and it was finally renewed on 22 June. On 25 June she complained to the Lead District Manager and posted that the branch 'kept my papers for a month and gave me 80,000 less'. The facts are that the delay was 19 days, the limit was renewed at the old 1.80 lakh, and the 80,000 she refers to was a one-year ad-hoc enhancement given last season which was never part of the sanctioned limit. The branch must reply within 48 hours. The draft on file reads: 'Dear Madam, With reference to your complaint, we regret for the inconvenience. Your application was rejected due to pending land records but now the same is sanctioned. Kindly be patience, the matter is under process since last one month. You have been given 80,000 less because your limit was reduced. For any query contact the branch. Yours faithfully, Branch Manager'.
1. Identify the factual inaccuracies and language errors in the draft, and state the risk each creates.
Read the worked answer
- 'Your application was rejected' - false; it was pending. This is the most dangerous line, because it is a written admission that a decision was taken and then reversed, which a complainant can quote in an ombudsman proceeding.
- 'because your limit was reduced' - also false; no reduction took place. It invents a second grievance and contradicts the branch's own records.
- 'now the same is sanctioned' - no date and no amount. The reply must say renewed on 22 June at 1.80 lakh, otherwise it cannot be matched to the record.
- 'regret for the inconvenience' - wrong preposition, and the regret is unowned. 'We regret the delay' is correct and specific.
- 'Kindly be patience' - wrong word form; should be 'kindly be patient'.
- 'under process since last one month' - contradicts the completed renewal and is vague about the 19-day delay.
- 'contact the branch' - no name, designation or number, which is itself a service failure.
- No complaint reference and no explanation of the ad-hoc enhancement, which is the actual source of her grievance.
2. Rewrite the reply in 90 to 120 words, and explain in two lines why your version is safer than the draft.
Read the worked answer
Corrected reply:
Dear Ms Yadav,
Thank you for your complaint of 25 June. We are sorry that the renewal of your Kisan Credit Card took 19 days. The delay was caused by the land-record verification awaited from the tehsil office, and we should have kept you informed while it was pending. Your limit of 1,80,000 was renewed on 22 June. The 80,000 you refer to was a one-year ad-hoc enhancement given last season; it was never part of the sanctioned limit, so your limit has not been reduced. If you would like your limit reviewed, please meet me any working day before 4 p.m. on the branch number given below.
Yours sincerely, Branch Manager Reference: COMP/2025/117
Why it is safer: it concedes only what is true - a 19-day delay and a communication lapse - while correcting the two statements that could be read as admissions; and it explains the 80,000 with a reason and an onward route, which is what the complainant actually wants rather than an apology alone.