Established in 1997, the NIC Nabarangpur District Centre has been a trailblazer, delivering state-of-the-art ICT services with cutting-edge solutions and advanced infrastructure. Through adept use of information, data, and technical expertise, the Centre empowers the District administration, playing a crucial role in efficient planning and decision-making for public service delivery. The collaborative synergy between the District Administration and NIC is pivotal, influencing the landscape of the state. Despite the predominantly tribal nature of the district, challenges persist in ensuring comprehensive government program outreach. Serving as a technology intermediary, NIC Nabarangpur facilitates electronic services, effectively bridging the gap between citizens and the government.
Established in 1997, NIC Nabarangpur is a pivotal ICT service provider for Divisional and District administration, excelling in G2G and G2C services. Renowned for executing state and central government e-Governance projects, the centre has played a vital role in the digital transformation of the region. Leveraging its expertise, NIC Nabarangpur has developed locally tailored web applications, contributing significantly to efficient governance. With over two decades of experience, the centre remains a key player, fostering technological advancements and enhancing service delivery.
Contributors: Biswaranjan Bhukta Scientist - C b.bhukta@nic.in
Key Initiatives in District
Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra
The celebration of Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra (VBSY) in all Gram Panchayats within the district is a concerted effort to promote government programs. The pivotal role played by NIC is evident in providing essential technical support to the district administration. This includes facilitating the seamless dissemination of data from the Gram Panchayats level to the Government. The Centre, equipped with a robust network infrastructure and reliable internet connectivity, actively engages in various aspects of VBSY. As a core member of the VBSY committee, the Centre contributes significantly by creating credentials, mapping routes, troubleshooting issues, and effectively managing programs to ensure their success.
Aspirational District Programme
The Aspirational District Programme, launched in 2017 and supported by NIC Nabarangpur District Centre in collaboration of the District Administration, represents a strategic initiative overseen by NITI Aayog. This program aims to enhance district performance by closely monitoring key performance indicators across diverse government initiatives. Emphasizing improvement in underperforming areas, the District Centre plays a vital role in monitoring applications, analyzing and validating data, overseeing the uploading process, conducting performance monitoring, and generating comprehensive reports. Notably, Nabarangpur District’s remarkable progress in Health & Nutrition, Education, Agriculture, Water Resources, and Basic Infrastructure secured its top position among Odisha’s 10 districts and 13th nationally in the delta ranking of district performance for 2021.
Covid-19 Support
Amidst the Covid-19 crisis, NIC Nabarangpur emerged as a key player, offering crucial technological support to the district administration. This multifaceted support encompassed monitoring and updating the Covid-19 Dashboard, a vital tool for real-time information. Additionally, the Centre facilitated virtual meetings and video conferences, ensuring seamless communication. In a proactive response to the healthcare challenges, the Centre contributed to the inauguration of dedicated Covid hospitals, overseeing patient reference monitoring. The provision of internet services for control rooms bolstered effective crisis management. Furthermore, the Centre played a pivotal role in daily reporting of Covid patient information and containment zones, enhancing transparency and public awareness through the district website.
Elections
NIC has been instrumental in election management, supporting various general elections from 2004 to the upcoming 2024. Responsibilities include preparing and managing the polling personnel database, randomization at different stages, report generation, uploading affidavits and nomination/rejections in the ECI Portal, daily reporting of arm seizure, electronic postal ballot, counting management, and declaring poll results. EVM management, segregation, FLC, commissioning, and randomization of EVMs also fall within the NIC District Centre’s purview. The election management for GE 2019 earned NIC Nabarangpur District an award from the ECI, acknowledging its excellence.
Furthermore, as a part of its social contribution, NIC Nabarangpur has conducted several tech-oriented programmes to spread awareness among citizens. The District Centre has been involved in taking up meeting and discussions on various cutting edge technologies that come in benefit of society such as Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence.
Figure: Training on Auction of IMFL Shops to District Revenue Department.
Other Key Initiatives in District
iRAD
The District Centre launched the iRAD Application, efficiently capturing crucial road accident data in Nabarangpur district. The District Centre has conducted several training sessions for Police Personnel, RTO, Health, and PWD/NH Departments, enabling real-time reporting of road accidents. A District Roll-out Manager (DRM) has been appointed to oversee training and provide hands-on support. Guided by the State iRAD Coordinator & DIO, the DRM ensures a step-by-step reporting process and offer guidance to departments as needed.
Figure: SIO Odisha and District Police Officers on inauguration of iRAD Application.
e-Office
e-Office is now operational in three offices within Nabarangpur District, digitizing over 45 files. NIC Nabarangpur, serving as the technology partner, collaborated effectively with the GA&PG Department to implement this system in Labor & Employment Department Offices situated in the district.
DAMPS
The District Revenue & Disaster Management department has adopted DAMPS (Disaster Assistance Monitoring and Payment System) Portal in full-swing to report, process and payment of ex-gratia to the dependents of deceased in scheduled natural calamity. A total of 434 cases have been processed and 48 cases are in pipeline at different stages of disbursal.
Revenue & Service Delivery
The Revenue & Service Delivery System aims to modernize state land records, ensuring accuracy, transparency, and accessibility. It aims to create reliable, updated land records reflecting ground realities.
The District Centre provides support by training Tahsildars and staff while addressing daily issues for effective implementation.
Awards
Her Excellency the President of India, Smt. Droupadi Murmu, conferred the “Bhoomi Sam-man Award” to Nabarangpur District for achieving saturation in DILRMP Core Component Digitization during July 2023.
Knowledge Sharing
NIC Nabarangpur actively contributes to society through informative programs, including a talk on applying Machine Learning to identify HSRP Number Plates. Another session explored “Media in the age of Artificial Intelligence” on World Press Day.
Additionally, the District Centre represented the district at the “Digital India Week Programme” in Ahmedabad in July 2022.
Quote from Dr. Kamal Lochan Mishra IAS, Collector & District Magistrate, Nabarangpur: “NIC District Unit Nabarangpur, established in 1988 has been facilitating District Administration with its State-of-the–Art ICT services to leverage the e-Governance scenario in the District. The services and infrastructure provided by NIC play a complementary role in manifesting the objective of 5T Initiative of Government of Odisha (Teamwork, Transparency, Technology, Time, and Transformation). The skilled officer serving has been proactive in implementation of important techno-driven works such as Aspirational Drug Programme, Covid-19 Report-ing, Elections and roll-out of state/central software applications etc.”
Way Forward
NIC Nabarangpur has been instrumental in raising governance standards, improving service delivery, and fostering citizen engagement in the digital realm. Continuously evolving, it will leverage emerging technologies to further strengthen the state’s ICT infrastructure.