Kerala - Kochi   

The widening reach of e-service

The practice of making use of Information Technology for community services has been gaining prominence in the recent past. The e-payment centres where various bills can be paid have been well received by the public. The IT-enabled service centres have expanded to perform different roles in various States.

The e-pay service through Akshaya centres in Malappuram district had started in 2004. It was a trendsetter and the facility was extended to other places.

The Government is planning to expand the network to rural areas as part of the e-governance mission. Some of the projects have already made waves because of the sheer novelty and value added service provided by them.

One such worthwhile projects is the Gramdoot, operated in Maharashtra since 2002. The services offered by the Gramdoot network included documentation for community certificates, insurance selling, marketing linkages for agricultural commodities and registration of birth and death. In Assam, ASHA provided services in agriculture, horticulture, animal husbandry, fisheries and sericulture. An e-immunisation project launched by the Andhra Pradesh Government involved the use of a specially designed handheld computer, which stored family data for two or three villages. The handheld computer has an inbuilt printer and operates on a battery. A unique health call centre, which facilitates emergency medicare services in rural areas, is another service in the IT mode, started by Andhra Pradesh.

R.Ramabhadran Pillai

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Chellanam reeling under acute water shortage
Maradu residents prepare charter of demands
`Cellphone has not pushed Ham radio out of range'
Colours and dreams of future
Swati Tirunal's statue unveiled
The widening reach of e-service
Easter celebrated with prayers, ceremonies
Today at Sabarimala
Around the City
In Kochi Today

Copyright © 2006, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu