Amritsar, NFA Post: Lauding the path-breaking initiatives of Kerala in e-governance, experts from across the globe have said that the governance milestones and benchmarks that Kerala has set continue to be relevant, when it comes to adopting electronic and digital technology.
The experts were sharing their insights and experiences during a session on e-governance on “Citizen Access to Services and Empowerment,” at the high-profile three-day virtual global conclave ‘Kerala Looks Ahead’ (KLA).
Welcoming the participants, Mohammed Y Safirulla, Additional Secretary, Department of Electronics and Information Technology, Government of Kerala, said the state has come a long way in the field of information technology, particularly in the areas of e-governance.
E-governance projects aimed at improving service delivery to citizens require greater attention to be placed on local context and local practices, Shirin Madon, Associate Professor, Information System, London School of Economics, said.
“Kerala is well-known for its social development model, legacy of political mobilisation and citizen empowerment. Akshaya project was a planned approach by Kerala State IT Mission (KSITM) in 2002 and it was very much driven by local demand. Government functionaries were critical in the success of Akshaya project in Kerala,” Madon added.
Mentioning that Kerala has always been receptive to new technologies, Jayant Bhatnagar, Board Director at Centre for Development of Telematics, Government of India, said “Like all our other technologies, Kerala has been supportive in our efforts and our technology Early Warning Platform, which is based on global standards, was first time used in Kerala during the flood. Any technology since 1984, which has been introduced by us, will have the first trials in Kerala before taking it to the rest of the country.”
Talking on social media platforms and threats of misinformation, Joyojeet Pal, Principal Researcher, Microsoft Research, said that there is a need to increase the culture of critical approach to misinformation in a progressive state like Kerala.
