Efficiency Guaranteed

The SulekhaPlan Monitoring System project that started in Kerala way back in
1997 was one of the e-governance initiatives in the context of decentralization
of powers to local governments who were the primary stakeholders. Streamlining
the process using computers was the main objective of the project.

According to K Premkumar, technical director of information Kerala Mission,
"More than 1,200 local governments submitted their decentralized plan projects
of 2008-09 and the project-wise expenditure was reported through the application
software." Around one-third of the plan funds of the states (about Rs 1,800
crore) are prepared and implemented by the local governments. While primary
stakeholders are local governments in Kerala, other stakeholders include the
District Planning Committee and the Technical Advisory Group. All projects are
prepared in Sulekha software and once the approved data is received at local
governments, the data is transferred to the data center of the state government
for directly publishing on the website, lsg.kerala.gov.in/sulekha. Guidelines
adherence can also be checked electronically.

From a technology perspective, the entire deployment is on Windows platform
with SQL server for handling databases. Applications are developed in Visual
Basic and ASP/ASP.NET for front end. The Information Kerala Mission has its
in-house personnel who are responsible for technology and maintenance services
related to the software, which includes deployment, training, and support. The
Kerala IT Department also facilitates co-location of servers at the data center
and the connectivity through KSWAN/State Information Infrastructure.
Interestingly, the data center is also utilized as disaster recovery center
where the complete database is uploaded to the server, which in addition is also
available at the local government level, district level and the Technical
Advisory Group. The Information Kerala Mission (IKM) is also responsible for
providing training on the Sulekha software.

A key outcome of the project was the time and cost savings of the
stakeholders in preparing the report. With the availability of electronic data
of the projects, preparation of summary reports and detailed reports was
possible at the click of a button, while the time for the project reduced from a
few weeks to two to three days. One of the objectives of the project is to
create transparency and efficiency. Handling details of more than 1.5 lakh
projects was not only a mammoth but virtually impossible task, and therefore an
electronic check was useful for the state government to ensure that development
targets are achieved. Reports of expenditure are also available in the Internet
which creates more transparency among the citizens and the local state
governments.

The project, which will complete its thirteenth year in 2010, also aims to
open up an accounting application in the next two months. The project roadmap
and the vision is to achieve and improve physical targets and improve asset
creators for streamlining processes. Another key initiative taken this year was
to optimize the format and improve the transparency in the project. Some funds
are also kept aside for women and child development projects in the state. The
coverage of the project is around 65-70% in the state. However the plan is to
have a project coverage of 90% by next year.

A key objective achieved was to develop a mechanism for regular monitoring of
the plan targets achieved by local bodies and developing a local body centric
management information system.

PC Suraj

surajp@cybermedia.co.in