India, Oct. 31 -- When an agitated Vaibhav Lad, a contractor from Buldhana, called the chief minister's office (CMO) on Friday, demanding that his pending dues for various government projects be cleared before Diwali, the official on the other end cut the call with a brusque: "Don't call here for issues regarding bills. Please contact the concerned department."

The call volume at the CMO and the two deputy chief ministers' offices will only intensify over time.

On Friday, the CMO was inundated with phone calls from many contractors who have been waiting for years for their dues to be cleared, as they flagged off a campaign titled, 'Call the CM and deputy CMs' to draw the government's attention to their unresolved concerns.

After many p...