E-Governance News: 15/2/10

NILEKANI SAYS ' BIJLI- SADAKPANI' IS PASSÉ
February 15, 2010
Mail Today  DNA (Mumbai edition)  

The slogan of bijli, sadak, pani is passé. Virtual things like Unique Identification (UID) number, bank account and mobile phone are the in- thing, says chairman of Unique Identification Authority of India ( UIDAI) Nandan M. Nilekani.

The information technology veteran said that in India, the model has changed, from roti, kapada, makaan (food, clothing, shelter) in the 1960s and 1970s, to the slogan in the last several years of bijli, sadak, pani (power, roads, water).

" Today, it's all virtual things — it's about UID number, mobile phone and bank account," Nilekani, bestknown for his role in building Infosys, said after the event of Citizen Extraordinaire Award 2010, instituted by the Prestige Group in association with Rotary Bangalore Midtown.

" If we can get everyone to have UID number, then we are giving them tools of opportunity.

With that, they can access services, benefits and their rights. We have gone from (the earlier slogans) physical things to abstract things (UID number, bank account, mobile phone)," Nilekani said, adding, though they look abstract, they really are very, very important and real foundation. " We believe soft infrastructure is as important as hard infrastructure," he added.

UID TO BE ROLLED OUT IN AUGUST: NILEKANI
Bangalore
The Economic Times

The much-awaited Unique Identification Number scheme is likely to roll out pilot projects by August 2010, Nandan Nilekani said after receiving the Citizen Extraordinaire Award 2010 on Saturday. The award function was organized by Prestige Group in association with Rotary Bangalore, Midtown.

Chairperson of the Unique Identification Authority of India, Nilekani said his link with Bangalore dates back to his birth at the Vani Vilas Hospital and early education at Bishop Cotton School.

"Nearly 75 million people in the country are still homeless and don't have an address. This is why they lose out on a host of benefits. Identity has created a barrier. At the same time, migration is increasing," he added.

Nilekani said more and more money is being spent on public welfare. He cited projects like the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, on which Rs 39,000 crore has been spent, and the right to education on which Rs 1.71 lakh is being spent. The right to food, which is about to be implemented, also involves crores. "As India develops, social programmes targeted at individuals will increase. We need a robust way of identifying individuals who are genuinely poor and not getting any benefits," he said.

The first part of the UID project involves enrolling everyone at stations where people can give thumb impressions, get their iris scanned and photograph taken. In the next 5 years, around 600 million people are likely to be covered.

DIGITALISATION OF LAND RECORDS GATHERS PACE
Chandigarh, February 15, 2010
The Financial Express

Punjab's ambitious project of digitalisation of land records being implemented under public-private partnership paradigm and under Build, Operate, Own and Transfer (BOOT) basis has gathered pace.

By the end of this year, there will be online access to the land records, which will benefit NRI population of the state. Besides, all 153 tehsils of the state would be computerised and the project will cost Rs 115 crore.

The project of land records is being implemented through Punjab Land Records Society. The BOOT operators CMC Limited are handling the work for Sangrur and Barnala while other districts are being looked after by CMS private Limited. These operators are supposed to implement data entry and validations of all revenue records. Operation and maintenance of service centres (Fard Kendras) and registration of documents will also be done.

Anurag Verma, secretary, Revenue department of Punjab said, "There are few shortcomings in the software and we have decided to get new software developed from Microsoft. This will be integrated with land records, deed writers, stamp duty and Geographic Information Systems ( GIS) module.

ONLINE RTI APPLICATIONS FOR NRIS!
New Delhi, February 15, 2010
Deccan Herald

To make it easy for NRIs to file RTI applications, the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs has asked government departments to provide a link on their websites for receiving online applications and appeals.

The ministry has written to Department of Personnel and Training, nodal department for RTI affairs and Ministry of External Affairs to make guidelines in this regard and make necessary changes in the Act. Its website has a link facilitating reception of online applications.

According to the proposal mooted by the ministry, an NRI will now be able to deposit Rs 10 as RTI fee in the equivalent local currency at the Indian Mission abroad and send their application through email to the concerned public information officer informing about deposit of fee.

"NRIs (Non-Resident Indians) are entitled to seek information from Ministries/Departments of Government of India/States under the RTI Act. In the absence of appropriate arrangement of deposit of requisite fee, they are finding it difficult to seek information," G Gurucharan, Joint Secretary at the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs wrote to DoPT.

It was a difficult task for the NRIs to file RTI applications seeking information, as there is no mechanism for online applications. The deposit of fee was also a difficult matter as there is no provision in the Act for submitting it in the currency of any other country.

Now, NRIs submit their RTI applications at Indian missions abroad which forward it to officials concerned but fee was accepted only in Indian currency. The fee can be paid either in cash or in valid instruments like postal order, demand draft etc.

It was difficult for NRIs to arrange such instrument abroad leaving them no option but to physically go to the Indian mission and submit fee in cash along with application. An RTI applicant Commodore Lokesh Batra made a complaint before the Central Information Commission highlighting the plight of NRIs.

Batra had also raised the issue during the annual convention convened by the Commission in October last year, which elicited positive reaction from activists and commissioners. After getting complaint from Batra, the Commission had sought views of the Ministry of Overseas Affairs and Ministry of External Affairs.

The Ministry of Overseas Affairs in its submission said, "payment of fee for seeking information has to be decided by the Ministry of External Affairs...As regards first and second appeal from abroad, matter has been taken up with the Department of Personnel and Training".

FOR ACCURATE DATA, GOVT PLANS TO MAP SLUMS
New Delhi
The Times of India

Aiming to meet ambitious target of making India slum-free, the government has embarked on a plan of remote mapping to get a ''reliable figure'' of people living in slums by collecting foolproof data on both notified and non-notified slums across the country.

While the current estimate of slum dwellers is based mostly on surveys of notified slums, most non-notified slums have been left out. Maps of cities prepared through remote sensing would give a clearer and more authentic picture of slums in a city and would include non-notified slums. Housing minister Kumari Selja said: "Most of the time the plans are based on projections rather than hard data. We plan to map the entire country so that we know about slums in each town and city. This would also include non-notified slums which are usually not accounted for."

The ministry, which has set a target of making India slum-free in the coming five years with the launch of the Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY), expects to get the exact figure by GIS mapping and including non-notified slums too. With involvement of Isro in this project, the land-mapping and slum surveys are being done through remote sensing with GIS-enabled software.

The ministry has also asked states to develop a Slum Information System and the Centre has provided them funds for the purpose. "We want the mapping to be completed in two years," Selja said.

COME 2011, EVERY COP WILL BE COMPUTER LITERATE
Mysore, February 14, 2010
The Times of India

The year 2011 could revolutionize the way police work. From filing FIRs to investigations, everything will be computerized. In that process, all 2,500 police officers in the city from the rank of constable to the top cop will be made computer literate by the end of 2010.

With a strong belief that computer training would ensure effective services, over 60 officers above the rank of sub-inspector are undergoing training at the city police headquarter since mid-January. Classes are being organized by a private computer-training firm at the commissioner of police office premises.

Deputy commissioner of police (crime) Rajendra Prasad told STOI that computer knowledge is mandatory to tackle the modern day challenges. Most of the criminals are well versed in use of mobiles and computers. If the investigation officer lacks computer knowledge, it hinders probes, he said.

The officers are also being trained for the police information technology (Police-IT), an initiative by Karnataka police for computerization of the administration across the state. This will bring transparency and help officers professionally, Prasad, a nodal officer to Police-IT for Mysore city, stated.