Come New Year, the Thrikkakara municipality will turn a complete e-office in its quest to become paperless during the digital era.
This is in tune with the State government’s K-SMART project for making various services of urban local bodies accessible to the public digitally thus making personal visits to offices redundant. Applications for various certificates can be submitted online under the project. They will be made available online too. With the public not required to visit offices to get things done, the existing leeway for corrupt practices will also be cut out, it is expected.
“We have allocated ₹27 lakh for turning the municipal office fully digital in compliance with the Government Order,” said municipal vice chairman and chairperson of the finance standing committee P.M. Younus.
The funds will be spent on readying infrastructure and equipment. As such, 22 computers, three laser printers, two high-speed document scanners, and four colour printers will be bought through the government portal. A specification in this regard has been drawn up by the technical officer of the Information Kerala Mission, an autonomous institution set up under the Local Self Government department to strengthen local self-governance through Information Communication Technology applications. The proposal has since been approved by the municipal council.
While applications and files dated till the end of this year will be maintained in physical form, the municipality will completely go into e-mode from the New Year. Accordingly, applications received from the public will be uploaded in the system and digitally moved to the section concerned.
“A significant benefit of e-office will be speedy response to applications filed under the Right to Information Act. Gone will be the system of taking up to a month for responding to RTI applications on account of the time taken to physically verify files since the information will be available at the click of a mouse,” said Mr. Younus.
