The National Informatics Centre is all set to make the beautiful islands spread all over the Arabian Sea into “SMART ISLANDS”
Since its establishment in 1988, National Informatics Centre (NIC) is engaged in furnishing wide spectrum of information technology services to various offices within Kavaratti, Lakshadweep. During the last eighteen years a large number of projects were conceived and successfully commissioned, along with developing and implementing certain software packages.
Introduction of VSAT service and PORTNET project are proving to be a milestone in creating Lakshadweep a formidable e-governance union territory. The PORTNET project for ‘anywhere to anywhere’ advance ship ticket reservation system has received the Microsoft e-governance award for “Innovative Project” during the year 2006.
€|Some of the major e-governance projects being executed by NIC Lakshadweep UT unit are PORTNET PORTNET project is proving to be a boon for the inhabitants of Lakshadweep. People can now opt for hassle free advance ship ticket reservation and flight booking for all those ships and flight plying between Lakshadweep, Kochi and Kozhikode. Tickets can be booked from any of the thirteen ticket counters of Lakshadweep administration prior to 30 days with all types of credit cards and prepaid cards as well. All the vital information including availability of tickets can be access easily with this project. Complying with VSAT, Tickets can now be easily booked from those areas where Internet facility is not available. All the functions are monitored and updated at Kavaratti NIC centre. Further proposals are being carried out for establishing new counters as well.
Challenges: The challenge was to have a central database that can deliver details of ship schedules, ticket availability, ticket status etc. to those people residing at remote and isolated islands.
Solution: The software was developed using .NET technologies. It uses SQL Server 2000 at the backend and IIS and ASP.NET technologies to develop the application.
Benefits: • Made ship ticketing system more transparent. • Facilitated ticket booking and monitoring its status from any counter. • Allowed checking of ship schedules and ticket availability through the Internet. • Benefited the rural population in the remote and isolated islands.
€|Video Conferencing Services This service interconnects all the islands of Lakshadweep with nation wide Video Conferencing network. Four video conferencing Studios are in operation at Kavaratti, Minicoy, Chetlat and Lakshadweep Administration office, through SCPC/DAMA VSAT. The remaining islands are provided with videophones and plasma screens facilitating reliable conference in the Chamber of Hon. Administrator, Government House at Kavaratti. Services like Public grievance and Distance education can now be effectively carried out with this service.
€|IntraLAK Intranet Portal of the Administration of Union Territory of Lakshadweep The IntraLAK is an integrated one-stop Intranet Portal for all government G2E applications, aiming to provide a single and personalized entry point to information and systems that any employee needs. Besides, this portal also aims at bringing employee-centric focus and provides a strategic service delivery platform for sharing, transaction and collaboration of routine and critical applications.
The Intranet Portal Solution provides a flexible Portal Platform for Document Management, Content Management, Collaboration and Workflow modules. Some of its benefits are: . Empower employees as they get the information in the right time. . A depository of all documents will be created. . Employees can participate in the decision making process irrespective of the location where they are posted.
E-Permit The Lakshadweep islands being a restricted area, this project automates the issue of restricted area Entry Permit for visiting Lakshadweep through online application. The system can be monitored efficiently from anywhere.
€|It is proposed to have the following enhancements to the e-permit system. . All the police station will be provided with Internet access for making the entry and exit details of the permit holders. . For the official permits, departments will be able to give approval on-line and for other permits the sponsors (who are already registered) will be able to give the approval on-line Interfacing with Interactive Voice Response System.
€|Automation of Regional Transport Office Implementation of VAHAN and SARATHI Two softwares viz. SARTHI and VAVAN are developed by NIC collaborating with Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, for issuing Driving license as well as registration of vehicles respectively through internet. Both the packages are implemented at Regional Transport Office, Kavaratti.
€|Web-PLANMIS Web-enabled Plan Monitoring Information System The system maintains the plan outlay for each scheme and for each department and the implementing departments has to enter the expenditure on each scheme every month. The planning department and higher authorities can monitor the same from anywhere. The system generates various reports and furnishes the following benefits: . The plan monitoring become easy. . The primary data entered by the departments is available to all. . There is no compilation/consolidation required. . Plan data can be viewed from anywhere through Internet. . Various reports can be generated.
€|SDONET A VSAT network connecting all the SDO offices in Lakshadweep VSAT’s are installed in all the Sub Divisional Offices/Addl. Sub Divisional Offices/Office of the Deputy Collector Minicoy considering the geographical isolations of islands.
The network is operational in all islands, and the SDO’s/ASDO’s are using this project for checking mails as well as browsing Internet for various e-governance applications. Point to Point Video Conferencing facility is also provided through this network in the remote and isolated islands.
€|Comprehensive Modernization of Land Records GPS/ETS Cadastral Survey and Spatial data creation and integration of the same with land records data.
The project envisages the GPS/ETS Cadastral survey (Parcel level Survey) of the land parcels and creates the spatial database and integrates the same with the non-spatial land record data. The surveyed maps are then geo-referenced with the Quick bird satellite imagery. Kavaratti Island is fully funded by NIC and is being done as a joint project of National Informatics centre, Revenue Department of Lakshadweep Administration, and Survey of India.
With the completion of the project a comprehensive database of Land records of the entire territory will be created.
€|LIRICS (Lakshadweep Islands Resident Identity Card System) This project creates the resident database of all the bonafide residents in Lakshadweep for issuing Resident Identity Cards to all. The created database are then used for planning purpose as well as for identifying beneficiaries for various schemes. The same can be integrated with Ship Ticket Reservation system and e-permit system. The birth and death registration along with up-to-date resident details are also available with the help of this system.
€|PRISM Personnel Resource Information System for Management The database of all the employees of Lakshadweep Administration is maintained and generated with this system. This improves the internal efficiency of the Administration and helps in taking various MIS reports. The development of a web interface for updating/accessing the details through the Intranet Portal are in progress for enabling various departments and employees to check their details from any where through the Intranet portal. The development of a complete web-enabled Personnel Management System is also in progress.
€|SDO-SUITE A Suite of e-Governance applications for sub divisional offices in Lakshadweep. SDO Suite is a comprehensive suite of applications conceptualized, designed and developed by National Informatics Centre, Lakshadweep U T unit to solve information management problems at Sub Divisional level. The following modules are integrated into SDO suite.
- Certificate Management System
- Residents management System
- Dak Monitoring System
- Personnel Information System
- Payroll and Accounts monitoring Information System
- Transportation and boat hire Management System
- Inventory Management System
In all the SDO offices Local Area Network (LAN) with a server and three client systems and peripherals like laser printer, scanner etc are installed for consolidating reports to entire Lakshadweep. This system improved the efficiency of the Sub Divisional Offices providing swift citizen services.
€|Electoral Roll and EPIC Management Information System for the management of Electoral roll and EPIC The system maintains, updates as well as generates the electoral roll of all the electorates in Lakshadweep as per the instruction of Election Commission of India. The softcopy of the electoral roll is published in CD-ROM every year as well as in websites.
The Complete Electoral Photo Identity Card (EPIC) is also generated from this system in the form of jpeg files. The system is in operation for the last five years and modifications/updating are done as per the instructions of Election Commission of India.
€|Web-enabled Scholarship Management System Ever since the system was introduced, the processes of scholarship disbursement became very efficient and transparent for the department of education; Lakshadweep. The system generates the sanction order as per approved guidelines, which are hard coded in the system. The State Bank of India, the designated bank for the disbursement of the scholarship can access the details through web and make payments to the parties with necessary updation.
The system uses a unique ID system for each student availing scholarship from the administration that enables the department to monitor the details of all the scholarships availed by a student.
€|Inventory management System for Electricity The inventory management system is developed and implemented in all electricity sub divisions within Lakshadweep Electricity department. The system maintains the inventory of all the items of the department and generates the cargo list and various MIS reports. It is operational in the area for the last three years.
€|Web-enabled Consumer Management for Department of Electricity Web-enabled system provides all the information required by the consumers, through a portal along with on-line services like, acceptance of application for electricity connection and other related service, accepts consumer bills, receives complaints from the consumers. The system also keeps accounts of various transactions and generates various account statements and MIS reports required by the department. The system is under trial run.
€|Other software packages Various other software packages implemented in the departments are Payroll information system, Accounts for the administration, e-permit system, computerization of employment Management Information System. Software packages like GPF Management system, Pension information system, Land Acquisition system, Recruitment Management System, Case Monitoring system, software for providing MIS support for professional college seat allotment, DAK Monitoring system, WAN-enabled DAK monitoring system etc are operational.
€|Web Services All the major departments are provided with separate domain names and those who have cleared the security audit are hosted with their respective domain names. Others are hosted in www.lakshadweep.nic.in
€|Training Services The NIC, Lakshadweep U.T. Unit organizes regular training programs for the government employees and keep them updated on the use of office productivity tools. Along with training programs on PORTNET and Medical Inventory System etc. various seminars and workshops are also organized for the benefits offices and IT departments.
€|Apart from above, various new projects are also under implementation process. . Implementation of Common Integrated Police Applications (CIPA) in all the police stations in Lakshadweep. . Web-enabled Integrated Financial Management System along with single personnel and Payroll Management system. . Development and implementation of web-enabled integrated inventory and cargo management system for department of electricity. . Development and implementation of web-enabled medical inventory management system for Directorate of medical and health Services. . Implementation of Web-enabled employment exchange services.