Which government portal handles which complaint (India)

The most common reason a genuine complaint goes nowhere in India isn't that no one cares — it's that it was sent to the wrong place. Every kind of problem has a specific official channel, and using the wrong one wastes weeks.

Here's a plain-English map of India's official grievance portals. Find your problem, use the right door.

Central government service

Examples: passport delays, PF/EPFO, income tax, railways, Aadhaar/UIDAI, central pensions, a central ministry or PSU.

Where: CPGRAMS — pgportal.gov.in. Pick the correct ministry/department when you file; that routing decides everything. (See our full step-by-step guide to CPGRAMS complaint registration).

Bank, NBFC or digital payment

Examples: failed UPI/ATM/card transaction not reversed, wrong charges, loan or credit-card disputes, unauthorised transactions.

Where: complain to the bank first, then escalate to the RBI Ombudsman (Banking Lokpal) — cms.rbi.org.in, helpline 14448 — once 30 days pass or you get an unsatisfactory reply.

• For general banking complaints: read our RBI Ombudsman escalation guide.
• For failed or disputed digital payments: read our guide to filing a UPI complaint with RBI & claiming ₹100/day compensation.
• For State Bank of India issues: follow our SBI to RBI Ombudsman grievance hierarchy.
• To track your file: check how to track RBI Ombudsman complaint status.

Cyber or financial fraud

Examples: you were scammed, money stolen online, UPI/phishing fraud, a fraudulent loan app.

Where: act immediately. Call 1930 (the national cyber-crime financial-fraud helpline) as fast as possible — the sooner it's reported, the better the chance of freezing the money — and file at cybercrime.gov.in. Speed matters more here than with anything else on this list.

Consumer dispute with a company

Examples: defective product, service not delivered, e-commerce problem, misleading ad, refund refused.

Where: the National Consumer Helpline — consumerhelpline.gov.in, or call 1915. For a formal case before a consumer commission, use e-Daakhil (edaakhil.nic.in) to file online.

Local civic problems and public hygiene

Examples: potholes, garbage not collected, broken street lights, dirty public toilets, overflowing sewage, water supply, encroachment.

Where: your city/municipal body — most corporations have an app or portal, and many cities use the Swachhata-MoHUA app for sanitation issues. Many states also run a CM helpline (such as 1076 or 181) that routes local issues to the right department. These are state/local, not central — CPGRAMS is the wrong door. (See our full guide on how to report hygiene and sanitation issues in public places).

Electricity

Where: your DISCOM (the local distribution company) first; if unresolved, the State Electricity Regulatory Commission and its consumer-grievance forum.

Telecom / broadband / DTH

Where: the service provider's complaint process first. TRAI sets the rules and there are appellate mechanisms if the provider doesn't resolve it; the Department of Telecommunications also runs a public-grievance channel.

Insurance

Where: the insurer's grievance cell first, then IRDAI's Bima Bharosa portal (bimabharosa.irdai.gov.in), and the Insurance Ombudsman for eligible disputes.

A state-government matter

Examples: state roads, state police, ration/PDS, state schemes, local revenue issues.

Where: your state's grievance portal (many states run their own, such as UP's Jansunwai, Rajasthan Sampark, etc.). CPGRAMS is for the centre; state matters belong to the state system.

When you genuinely don't know which door

Sometimes a problem straddles several — a scheme that involves both a central ministry and a state department, or an issue no single portal owns. When the right channel isn't obvious:

• Start with the body closest to the problem (the local office, the specific company, the specific department).
• Keep every reference number and date.
• If it's bounced or ignored, escalate up the chain.

And this is exactly where raising it publicly helps most. When you post the problem openly, other people who've hit the same wall can tell you which door actually worked for them — and can back the issue so it's harder to ignore. The official portal is where the complaint is filed; the public post is where you find the people who've solved it before, and the weight to get it moving.