Badgam, a centrally located District in the North Indian State of Jammu and Kashmir came into existence in July, 1979. Having a topography of both plain and mountainous areas, the District covers 1371 square kilometres and supports a population of around 4.97 lakhs. Besides being culturally enriched and having some of the best orchards and handicrafts in the Country, the Badgam District has also gained importance because of the presence of the famous Charar-i-Sharief Shrine.
A Tough Beginning
The NIC Badgam District Centre first became operational in 1989, but it had to be closed down due to the unfortunate eruption of militancy in the State. The Centre once again became functional in 1995. It had to struggle hard to make the Government and the people aware of the utility of Informatics. The initial emphasis was thus on Promotional activities whereby extensive training programmes were organised for the District Officials. The intense efforts soon bore fruits and the Badgam District Centre got off to a flying start.
On the Way to Success
Ever since its rejuvenation, the District Centre has successfully undertaken milestone projects which have gone a long way in helping it to establish a firm footing. Some of the highlighting achievements of the Centre include:
● Computerization of the Integrated Social Security Scheme (ISSS) - where the individual records of 4000 beneficiaries of social welfare schemes was computerised. ● Relief Distribution System for Militancy Victims - where an up-to-date computerised record of the relief distributed to militancy victims from 1989 to 1997 was maintained. ● District Plan Computerization - involving the computerization and monitoring of the District Plan 1996-97 comprising of various Plan Schemes approved by the District Planning and Development Board. ● Public Distribution System Computerization - where the PDS records in the District were computerized village-wise in order to provide a smooth running and accurate monitoring system. ● Teacher Recruitment Package - where a candidate list was generated Tehsil-wise, qualification-wise, category-wise etc. and applications were screened accordingly.
During Elections
The extensive work done by the NIC Badgam District Centre during the Lok Sabha and the last Assembly Elections in J&K was highly appreciated by the District and State Authorities. Exhibiting a commendable dedication to duty, the District Centre Staff performed round the clock and participated in the collection of latest election data, Exit Polls and Elections Results Analysis.
NICNET Utilization
NICNET is widely used in the District Centre and has assumed an important status because of the remoteness of the District and the underdevelopment of the other means of communication. Departments such as Civil Supplies, Planning, Industries, Agriculture, Social Welfare, Health, Education and the District Treasury send and receive data from their Headquarters using NICNET on a regular basis. Other Departments resort to data transmission on a weekly or monthly basis. NICNET is also utilized for message transmission between State Secretariat and the District Headquarters on one hand and between the State and the Central Administration on the other.
Training
Realizing that training is an essential factor for any computerization effort, NIC Badgam District Centre has been organizing a variety of training programmes. Broadly two types of training programmes are being conducted namely Training for computer awareness and Training in data entry operation. Almost all the important Government Departments and officials of the District have been included in one or the other training programmes. The sustained efforts by the District Unit have resulted in the growth of a new culture of Informatics in the District.
Informatics has a special role to play in Districts such as Badgam where development and security go hand-in-hand. The NIC Badgam District Centre, with its rather embryonic inception has moved meritoriously with its objectives, towards the accomplishment of its mission. But all that has been achieved is only the tip of the iceberg. The work does not end here and there are miles to go yet. The Unit has, in a very short span of time emerged as an integral part of the District Administration.