ITANAGAR, Jan 25: Giving a push to digitalization of offices to ease governance and systematize planning from the grassroots level, Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Friday launched a smart village movement (SVM) data collection mobile application called ‘Smart Village’, and the websites of nine state government departments in a function here.
“The data collected from remote villages across the state through the app would not only be utilized for the smart village movement (a state government flagship programme) but also be used as inputs by respective departments to structure their annual plans,” said the chief minister after launching the application.
He said the smart villages programme “is not only a module to empower select villages but also a concrete step towards decentralization of our planning process.”
The mobile app would facilitate the SVM process in mapping available assets, opportunities and challenges
in villages, based on which interested partners (MNCs, NGOs, etc) would offer ways and means to empower the villages in select spheres.
The state government had on 13 June last year signed a memorandum of understanding with the SVM to facilitate technology innovations, research and development, open innovation, technology interventions, and curriculum development in select villages.
The movement will seek to integrate technology and indigenous rural practices to generate sustainable revenue for constituents, thus increasing the overall standard of living and quality of life, and simultaneously creating economic, social and environmental values. The programme is scheduled to be launched by the end of May this year.
Complementing the state chapter of the SVM are the IT & communications department, the state remote sensing application centre, the rural development & panchayati raj department, the NIC, and technology partner Skymap Global.
“The time schedule must be adhered to, so that the benefits of the programme reach the people without delay,” the CM said.
Former San Francisco (USA) consul general V Ashok, who is a senior advisor to the smart village programme, said “Arunachal Pradesh has immense potential for the world to invest and innovate.”
He sought support and coordination from state government officials to make the SVM a success in the state.
“Our ultimate goal is to make Arunachal Pradesh a prosperous and happy place to live in,” he said.
The CM also today handed over information & communication technology equipments to five departments, the installation of which would enable these departments to go entirely digital. The departments are finance, planning & investment, political, home, general administration (GA/SA) and education.
IT Special Secretary Prince Dhawan said the equipments are being given to the five departments initially as they receive and dispatch most of the government files.
“If these departments begin to receive and dispatch files digitally, the rest of the departments will have to follow suit,” he said.
Dhawan said the aim is to take on board the entire civil secretariat by the end of 2019, with plans to overhaul directorates into e-offices by 2020-21, and the district offices by 2021-22.
The nine departments along with their websites are: the state council for IT & e-governance (www.ditc.arunachal.gov.in); finance, planning & investment (www.finance.arunachal.gov.in); research (www.research.gov.in); information & public relations (www.arunachalipr.gov.in); textiles & handicrafts (www.textiles.arunachal.gov.in); power (www.power.arunachal.gov.in); health & family welfare (www.health.arunachal.gov.in); the state council for science & technology (www.ardst.arunachal.gov.in); and civil aviation (www.civilaviation.arunachal.gov.in).
Nodal officers have been appointed by the departments to ensure upkeep of the sites. (CMO)
