Minister for Panchayats and Social Welfare M.K. Muneer formally elevated Kozhikode to the status of ‘e-district’ at a function in Kozhikode on Sunday.
This will ensure speedy processing of applications and 23 services/certificates online for citizens. All the 117 village offices in the district had been equipped with facilities for online issuance of certificates to applicants.
Dr. Muneer said the State would achieve commendable leaps in computerisation and online delivery of important documents through local self-government institutions (LSGIs) in one year. “The aim of the government is to help all the citizens in the State access and download the required certificates from their homes,” he said.
The government had already prepared a comprehensive databank of citizens who were born after 1970 to begin with the new task. “On completion of this, the citizens would be able to download their birth certificates and several other documents,” he said.
Akshaya centres
The services of over 140 Akshaya centres had been enlisted for the online filing of applications and for the delivery of services. For processing an application, the Akshaya centres would be allowed to charge Rs.20 of which Rs.10 would be credited to the government account.
As per the terms and conditions, the citizens would be allowed to submit their online applications from any Akshaya centre. In addition to the application fee, they would be liable to pay all the extra charges for the scanning of documents. After the submission process, the applicants would be able to get SMS updates on the status of the application.
According to Information Technology Mission (IT Mission) officials, the overall implementation and monitoring of the project would be controlled by the District E-Governance Society (DEGS) comprising heads of various important government departments. The team would ensure flawless service delivery and provide technical support to village offices.
For project implementation, the district had received Rs.10 lakh in the initial phase from the government. Funds from other sources were also utilised to supply laptops with internet connectivity to village offices and complete the issuance of digital signatures to Village Officers. The National Informatics Centre guided the work.
A. Pradeep Kumar, MLA, presided over the inaugural function. District panchayat president Kanathil Jameela; Purushan Kadalundi, MLA; and District Collector K.V. Mohan Kumar were present.
