Domestic News

Maharashtra MGREGS Project Goes to Glodyne

Glodyne Technoserve has signed an agreement with the Maharashtra government
to execute a turnkey technology infrastructure management project for
implementing Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGREGS) in
Gadchiroli district of the state. The project that envisages implementation of
e-Disha contains a host of services features such as direct and indirect
employment opportunities as well as transforming rural economic and social
relations at many levels. The scheme would also lead to greater benefits to the
rural masses and inclusive governance. The project will bring in more
transparency and will also enable convergence of other social schemes such as
health and education as well.

Pimpri Garbage Collection through GPS

Pimpri in Maharashtra has achieved a rare distinction of being the first urban
center in the country where GPS is being used to monitor garbage collection. The
Pimpri Chinchwad Municipality Corporation (PCMC) has introduced the system known
as GPS based management for waste carrier solution, to ensure cleanliness and
transparency in garbage disposal. As a part of the e-governance drive under
JNNURM reform agenda, the actual movement of waste collecting vehicles could be
easily monitored on real-time. A number of trucks have been deployed with GPS
devices for lifting garbage from dustbins.

More CSCs to Drive e-Governance

The center as well as the states are banking on the National e-governance
Plan (NeGP) to enhance the reach of e-governance in the country with the rollout
of 55,000 common service centers (CSCs) out of the 1 lakh planned. The
Department of IT now plans to set up additional 150,000 CSCs to cover all
Panchayats as well. The services of CSCs will be delivered under Bharat Nirmansupporting
other programs such as Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, National Rural Health Mission, and
National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme.

Bangalore University for Smart Cards

Plans are on the anvil by the Bangalore University to provide smart cards to
over 2.5 lakh students as part of the UID project. The all-in-one smart card
will contain student details such as attendance, mark sheets, degree
certificates, hall tickets, and curricula. The scratch proof card will also have
the students photograph embossed and will be valid for ten years. Every college
will have multiple card readers where students can access information on the
card. The estimated cost of the project is around Rs 2.5 crore per year. BU is
also planning to introduce interface automation where data will be entered into
the main system directly, Currently, OMR sheets are brought to the main
evaluation centers and scanned for entering the marks. In the planned interface,
all the systems in the evaluation center are connected to the main server. After
evaluation, evaluators can enter them in the system, which will be directly
upgraded in the main system and speed up the process.

e-District Schemes @ UP

The Uttar Pradesh government is set to launch e-District schemes to promote
e-governance. The scheme, promoted by the Department of IT and Electronics is
already operational in districts such as Sitapur, Sultanpur, Ghaziabad,
Gorakhpur, Rae Bareilly, and Gautam Buddh Nagar. Out of 885 centers for the
State Wide Area Network (SWAN), 830 have been constructed and the remaining will
be ready by the end of November 2009. About 4,500 public utility centers have
already been established and are working. The department has already signed an
agreement with several IT agencies who will promote government policies among
rural masses. Scholarships have been paid to over 3.5 mn students through an
online system. Similarly, pension of over 4 mn elderly is being deposited online
in bank accounts. Facility of online registration of properties is also
available.

PC Suraj

surajp@cybermedia.co.in