Bhagalpur – situated on the southern banks of the holy River Ganga, is famous for producing Tassar silk and sarees and hence also known as the ‘Silk city of Bihar’. The important places to visit are the ancient Buddhist University at Vikramshila, Jain Temple at Nathnagar, Sahjangi and the Ajagaibinatha temple at Sultanganj. The district celebrates the “Shravani Mela” during the period of July–August every year when Sultanganj is flooded with pilgrims from India, Nepal, Bhutan and other countries of the world - to collect the holy water of the Uttarwahini Ganga and pour it on the Shivlings at Basukinath and Baidyanath Dham temple situated at Deoghar district, Jharkhand. ICT plays a key role in bridging the gap between government and citizen. To promote e-Governance and to improve citizen centric services various e-Governance applications have been implemented by NIC District Centre, Bhagalpur. In this era, Information Technology holds the key for overall development. It gives me immense pleasure to present the e-Governance initiatives that we have taken with the help of NIC. The e-governance initiatives taken up by the District Administration to improve the service delivery to the citizen as well as the G2G Services. It is through e-governance that we can bring transparency and efficiency in administrative system and can serve the society effectively. District Administration, Bhagalpur with help of NIC District Unit has implemented various e-governance applications/solutions. Apart from various other e-governance projects, District Unit of NIC, Bhagalpur has also played a vital role in General Elections and Bhagalpur By-Elections in 2014. MAJOR ICT INITIATIVES Online System for Shravanimela: An e-governance initiative was implemented for the first time by the District Administration for Dakbam Kawariya’s (pilgrims) during the recently held Shravani Mela. The online web based application is used to trace and monitor the movement & activities of the Dakbam Kawariya’s A card (pass) bearing number, date & name is allotted to the pilgrim at Sultanganj en route to Deoghar during the Shravani Mela. The web based application helps District Administration in making necessary arrangements for the pilgrims within temple premises. For transparency purpose, anybody can check the status of Dakbam Kawariya’s on the website homepage. The system uses SQL Server database as the backend and PHP for front end. The software is multiuser friendly, password protected with online query facility. District Portal (http://bhagalpur.bih.nic.in): The portal serves as an platform for dispensing various G2C services. It also provides information on various schemes, tenders, recruitment process etc. District profile and information related to places of tourist interest is also available on the portal. Land Record Computerization: This is the first initiative towards e-governance at the grass root level to overcome the existing manual system presently plagued by inconsistency in land records, a main cause for land related disputes. ICT provides a great boon to improve & provide timely citizen centric services. The digitized data of land details is uploaded on the public domain site - http://lrc.bih.nic.in for an easy access to ensure efficient, accurate & transparent delivery mechanism. Automation of mutation process, updation of land records & linking the records to registration office is the prime focus of the project. Right To Public Service Act: The act is implemented using ICT at the grass-root level. A computer generated receipt is provided to the applicant ensuring service delivery within a stipulated time. Online monitoring of the disposed, received, expired and pending applications is done at the district level. There is also provision to apply online for Caste, Income and Residential Certificates from Bihar Bhawan, Delhi. Computerization of Transport Department: Vahan and Sarathi software are used for vehicle registration and issuing smart card based driving licenses to thwart duplication and false issuance. The system helps district administration to effectively and efficiently monitor the registered vehicles, vehicular information and check related offences resulting in transparency. Computerization of Registry Office: The ‘SCORE’ (System for Computerization of Registration Office) is a web-based system through which data pertaining to various types of deeds are captured and stored on the server. Implementation of the system has resulted in efficiency & transparency in the Registration process. Public Grievances Redressal & Monitoring System (PGRAMS): The main objective of this online web based application is to provide G2C services by speedy & timely disposal of cases/grievances. It also saves money and reduces harassment of the common people. The system effectively facilitates District Administration in monitoring pending and disposed cases. National Knowledge Network (NKN): NKN aims to create countrywide virtual classroom and to provide collaborative research, virtual library, sharing of computer resources, NKN services e-Governance applications, bulk data transfer facility to the educational universities such as Bihar Agriculture University, Sabour, Bhagalpur Engineering College, Bhagalpur, JLNMCH ( Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College and Hospital), Bhagalpur, TMBU Bhagalpur University. NKN has brought together all the stakeholders from science, technology, higher education, health care, agriculture and government onto a common platform. e-Court Project: JOAS software which is a web based application is used to monitor day to day activities of Judicial Office of the District Court. The software generates reports to monitor the number of cases listed, pending and disposed under a particular judgeship. IVFRT Project: IVFRT (Immigration, Visa, Foreigners’ Registration and Tracking) is a mission mode project consisting of two modules - c-FRO module for foreigner’s registration & online visa services and c-Form/s-Form for capturing information/details of citizens/students under NeGP. IVFRRT aims to enhance the experience of in-bound and out-bound travelers from and to India with a vision to develop a secure and integrated service delivery framework to facilitate legitimate travelers while strengthening the security. IBFRT has been successfully implemented at the SSP (c-FRO) Office, Bhagalpur. NADRS (National Animal Disease Reporting System) Project: The online web based application helps to monitor the spread of diseases in animals. The network based system at block level is useful in making decisions and future planning process. Socio-economic Caste Census & Ration Card Digitization: This project acts as an indicator to know the exact number of people who are socially and economically poor on the basis of caste. The data is very useful for District Administration in planning & implementing various poverty alleviation programs/schemes such as generation of Ration Card for the socially and economically poor people, etc. NIC-NET/VC Facility: Bhagalpur is connected with NIC State HQrs. over 34 Mbps (BSNL) link and 1Gbps (PGCIL) link to provide smooth connectivity to Head Post Office, Bhagalpur & Sub-Post Office, Naugachia; CBDT Bhagalpur and also to different departments of the District Administration. The VC facility is provided to the District Administration for implementation of various schemes, law and order and hearing of RTI through CIC.