On a high ride to leverage e-Governance through ICT initiatives Vellore is one of the thirty two Districts of the enchanting Tamil Nadu State. NIC Vellore was established here to provide ICT support to District Administration and other Departments to facilitate efficient e-Governance in this large area bound District. Equipped with state-of-the-art IT infrastructure, NIC Vellore boasts of a dedicated 1 Gbps line with backup line, video conference facility etc. Furthermore, the centre is the hub of IT consultation and e-Governance activities in the District. Vellore District is located in northern part of Tamil Nadu, and it shares border with Andhra Pradesh. Covering an area of 5920.18 sq. km, the District is comprised of 13 taluks, and this makes it one of the biggest Districts of the state. Vellore had the privilege of being the seat of the Pallava, Chola, Nayak, Maratha, Arcot Nawabs and Bijapur Sultan Kingdoms. Vellore Fort was described as the best and strongest fortress in the Carnatic War in the 17th Century. It has witnessed the Sepoy mutiny of 1806. Apart from being a desired travel destination, Vellore is also popular for leather products, Arcot cuisine and Carnatic Nawabs era handicrafts like cane furniture. NIC Vellore was established in 1989 to provide ICT infrastructure and services to the District Administration and other government organizations situated here. Since its inception, the organization has been immensely contributing through advanced ICT initiatives in the District, thereby enabling enhanced e-Governance.
“To provide transparent and quick services through e-Governance is highly essential for District Administration. Owing to a large area, the District Administration is engaged in providing best and cost-effective services to people at their nearby locations to enable quick access, using ICT technologies. NIC Vellore plays a significant role in providing e-Governance services, along with the District Administration. NIC Vellore is supporting in many ways to achieve the above goal by extending services like software solutions, citizen-centric services, ICT infrastructure, video conferencing, and consultation to Vellore District Administration.” S.A. RAMAN, IAS District Collector, Vellore District
ICT Initiatives in the District District web portal (vellore.nic.in) The District Website of Vellore, maintained by Vellore District Administration, provides information about facts, history, administration, subordinated departments and tourism to public. Rules, guidelines, information on schemes and programmes are updated regularly in order to ensure transparency and help citizens avail benefits by staying familiar with the District Administration and the government. To promote tourism, details of protected monuments, maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India and the Department of Archeology, Tamil Nadu Government, are given on the website, along with a photo gallery. The newly improved bilingual (English and Tamil) website, based on S3WaaS (Secure, Scalable and Sugamya Website as A Service framework), provides enhanced user-friendly functionalities and interfaces, in compliance with the Guidelines for Indian Government Websites (GIGW) and robust security standards.
National Knowledge Network (NKN) A high-speed backbone connectivity system enabling knowledge and information sharing among higher education institutes, NKN has been implemented at four institutions in Vellore. They are connected through 1 Gbps NKN connectivity.
Video Conferencing NIC Vellore has been providing communication services through video conference facility to stakeholders such as District Administration, various departments and public, thereby leading to an effective e-Governance. National and state-wide review meetings, trainings and Central Information Commission hearings are facilitated through the video conference studio of NIC Vellore.
Election related activities In the recent General Elections to Lok Sabha and By-elections to Assembly Constituencies, the District Informatics Officer (DIO) of NIC Vellore was appointed as the Nodal Officer for ICT Applications, Communication Plan, Poll Monitoring System and Member for District Media Certifying Monitoring Committee by the District Election Officer. Various ICT applications were introduced by the Election Commission of India and Chief Electoral Officer, Tamil Nadu, for pre-poll and poll day activities implemented in the District at Returning Officers (RO) and Assistant Returning Officers (ARO) levels. Various activities like training, troubleshooting and report generations were handled by NIC Vellore for smooth conduct of elections. A continuous monitoring of social media including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram was carried out to find out paid news and advertisements without permission from Media Certifying and Monitoring Committee (MCMC).
TamilNILAM (Tamil Nadu Information System on Land Administration and Management) This web-based application is implemented to modernize the management of Land Records, minimize scope of land/property disputes and enhance transparency in the Land Records Maintenance System. The system provides citizens with a facility to file application for Patta Transfer/ Sub-division, along with requisite backend processing. Both the rural and urban TAMILNILAM Software have been implemented in Vellore District. Currently, all the town and rural land records are made available online.
Old Age Pension Scheme (OAP) A State Government back office software has been provided for social security schemes fund management and the processing of schedule preparation. Major social security schemes of the State and National Governments like Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme (IGNOAPS), Indira Gandhi National Widow Pension Scheme (IGNWPS), Indira Gandhi National Disability Pension Scheme (IGNDPS), Destitute Widow Pension Scheme (DWPS), Destitute Differently Abled Pension Scheme (DDAPS) etc., are covered under this web-based application.
Other Key Initiatives in the District Chief Minister’s Uzhavar Padhukappu Thittam (CMUPT) This application maintains eligible beneficiary farmers’ database with various user level access for monitoring the fund and disbursement of each installment of the scheme.
Grievance Day Petition (GDP)/ Petition Processing Portal The application facilitates the public to submit petitions of their grievances as well as to view the status of petitions at Collectorate Counters, Common Service Centres and online. The petitions are processed by the Collectorate and the concerned offices of all the Departments by forwarding the petitions back and forth hierarchically down the line till the action taken by the concerned officer is accepted by the Collectorate. It can be implemented at other levels like State, Taluk, etc., in addition to the Collectorate level and also for any individual department.
Integrated Temple Management System (ITMS) ITMS portal helps citizens find complete information about temples and avail all the temple services. This application offers facilities like management and dissemination of temple information, online temple services to citizens, management of temple properties (movable and immovable), publishing of temple-wise events/ announcements etc.
Other Key Projects Implemented ••Immigration, Visa and Foreigner’s Registration & Tracking (IVFRT) project’s Foreigner Registration Office level modules for services like Resident Permit, Exit Visa, C-Form, S-Form etc., are implemented at District Police Office, Vellore. ••National Database of Arms Licenses - Arms License Issuance System (NDAL – ALIS) is implemented for arms license issuance and renewal. 100% Unique Identification Numbers were generated for all arms licenses issued in Vellore District. ••Aadhaar Enabled Biometric Attendance System (AEBAS) has been successfully rolled out in the Government of India organizations situated in Vellore. AEBAS is implemented at all the High Schools and Higher Secondary Schools coming under the Department of School Education, Government of Tamil Nadu. ••e-Courts project has been implemented at 50 court halls, available in 11 locations of Vellore District.
Other Important Events ••IT infrastructure setup and support provided for the Hon’ble President of India during his visit to Vellore District in May 2018. ••Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad, Hon’ble Union Minister for Law & Justice, Communications and Electronics & Information Technology, interacted with NIC Officials during his visit to Vellore District in February 2019. ••Shri Narendra Modi, Hon’ble Prime Minister, interacted with the beneficiaries of various schemes through video conferences. Vellore was one of the interactive sites for the Prime Minister Awas Yojana (PMAY) Scheme. ••Programmes of the Hon'ble Prime Minister, Self4Society, MSME Loans, Corporate Initiatives, etc., were webcasted at District level for audience from relevant industries.
Awards and Accolades ••“Gold Award” to Vellore District under “Web Ratna – District” category in Digital India Awards 2018 held in New Delhi ••NIC Officers of Vellore District felicitated for exemplary services by the District Collector during the celebration of Independence Day in 2018
Summary ICT technologies are essential to provide effective governance and reduce barriers like distance, delay in process, less operational cost etc. The District Administration of Vellore provides cost-effective and simple solutions using technologies and necessary ICT infrastructure. NIC Vellore is the key implementer and solution provider to accomplish the goal of impactful e-Governance in the District.