Maran urges extensive use of ICT for masses

NEW DELHI: Minister of communications and IT, Dayanidhi Maran has called for an extensive and imaginative use of information and communication technologies (ICTs) in day-to-day management of urban local bodies with a view to increase their effectiveness and efficiency of their operations.

While delivering the valedictory address at the "National Seminar on e-Governance in Municipalities", he said, "ICTs have a particularly vital role to play in transforming the interface between governments and the citizens they serve, particularly in urban agglomerations". Maran added that because of growing literacy and awareness levels among citizens, their expectations in terms of services from the local bodies are also rising rapidly. It is, therefore, imperative that these bodies are geared to provide efficient services, meet the demands of the citizens and make their interaction with municipalities easy and simple, while ensuring accountability and transparency.

According to him, e-governance programs need to be stabilized, enhanced, replicated and spread to overcome the increasing digital divide between municipal bodies across the country and speed up proliferation of the successes. He informed that a number of municipal corporations, particularly in the states of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat have successfully implemented e-Governance programs and the department of IT has been in close touch with the urban development ministry to take these initiatives forward.

Maran said that e-governance action plan has been included in the top 10 priorities of his ministry. Under this plan, both the Center and the States would undertake the projects for countrywide implementation in a phased manner over the next two to three years. He disclosed that a national conference on e-governance would be called for, next year.

Maran further informed that his ministry has evolved a program to provide handholding support to states and agencies that wish to implement the e-governance projects rapidly based on the successes achieved elsewhere. This approach may be extended to e-governance in municipalities.

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