E-Governance Awards for Websites/Papers From Sonal Kalra, Editor (with Inputs from Sunil Kumar, NIC-Haryana, Ajay Chahal, NIC Himachal, Alka Aggarwal, NIC Yojana Bhawan Unit, Gautam Gupta, NIC A&N and Ravish Azad, NIC HQ) The Government of India is committed to building up an organisational environment that inspires and facilitates developing and deploying processes and web enabled applications which provide better citizen services and encourages participation of users/stakeholders. With an aim to encourage the drive for modernization and e-governance, the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances recently instituted awards, at various levels for the websites of those government/semi-govt departments, organizations and offices that operationalize and institutionalize in an exemplary way, the framework of the underlying principles encompassing ‘good governance’. Awards were also instituted for exemplary Papers written on themes related to e-governance. The Awards were in the form of an icon status and stars (Gold Icon : 5 stars ; Silver Icon : 4 stars ; Bronze Icon : 3 stars and Merit Icon : 3 stars) and were presented as mementoes and certificates to the Head of the Organization/Team owning and managing the websites and to the author(s) of the selected Papers. Nominations were received for forty seven websites of various State Governments, Departments, Undertakings etc. as well as forty-five papers on themes related to e-governance. True to the spirit of carrying out work of the highest order, websites designed by NIC were nominated in large numbers and three out of the fours websites which finally bagged the coveted awards turned out to be developed by NIC. Also, a paper by NIC Haryana team won the Silver icon for its effective content. The winners were awarded at a special ceremony during the 6th National Conference on E-Governance held at Chandigarh on 24th and 25th October’2002 by Capt. Amarinder Singh, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Punjab. Here’s a brief glimpse of the winners….. Winner Websites Gold Icon Status : Andhra Pradesh State Portal (http://www.aponline.gov.in) The website is a true example of how Internet can be effectively used to reach out to the common citizens and make their lives easy. The features of the site include a one-stop link to online citizen services, application forms for various services, query facility for request status by citizens, secured e-payments, integration with wireless devices etc. Designed by Tata Consultancy Services, the website has won other awards too, in the past. Silver Icon Status : Himachal Pradesh Government Portal (http://himachal.nic.in) The official web portal of the Himachal Pradesh Government has a plethora of useful information and links for the visitors. A special feature is the link to Lokmitra Citizen Government Interface which provides services like downloadable forms, government telephone directory, online electoral rolls, causelist of the State High Court, daily market rates of food items and commodities, admission notices, civil list, exam results, blood donors’ database, weather, events etc. Since Himachal Pradesh is a tourism intensive state, the website also provides link to the hotel directory and the online hotel reservation system. The website , designed and developed by NIC Himachal Pradesh State Unit is simple but smart and a major step towards E-Governance in the State. Sh.Ajay Chahal, NIC HPSU receiving the award from Capt Amarinder Singh, Hon’ble CM of Punjab. Bronze Icon Status : Planning Commission Website (http://planningcommission.nic.in) The website of the Planning Commission provides in-depth details about the various five year plans, related reports, data and statistics on various economic and social indicators and a large number of useful links to the Government of India websites. Several useful reference papers and reports about the five year plans have been provided in an ‘easy-to-download’ manner for the visitors. The site has been designed and developed by the Yojana Bhawan Unit of NIC. Special Award : Andaman & Nicobar Islands Tourism Website (http://tourism.andaman.nic.in) This website, exclusively on the tourism aspect of the picturesque islands of Andaman and Nicobar islands acts as a one-stop guide to all one needs to know about visiting the islands. The site, designed and developed jointly by NIC –A&N Unit and the Web Services Division at NIC HQ , provides information on the History of the Islands, the favourite tourist spots, general info, travel tips and accommodation etc,. A highlighting feature is the photo gallery depicting beautiful images of the emerald islands. Best Paper Silver Award Apart from the websites, a paper submitted by NIC Haryana State Unit also won the Best Paper “Silver” Award at the event. The Paper on “Enhancing Transparency in Welfare Pension Schemes through IT” has been co-authored by Sh. Dharam Vir, IAS, Principal Secretary IT Haryana, Sh. Ghan Shyam Bansal, SIO, NIC-Haryana State Unit and Sh.Susheel Kumar, PSA, NIC-HSU. The paper deals with various categories of welfare pension schemes and salient features of the HaPPIS (Haryana Pension Processing and Information System) software developed by NIC Haryana State Unit.