[NIC says]‘We influence lives of millions of Indians’-[For what? CORRUPTION]

NIC says ::  ‘We influence lives of millions of Indians’ –

for WHAT ???

CORRUPTION in INDIA ???

NIC has joined hands with NISG, eGov Secretary, eGov Jt. Secretary, Addl. eGovernance Secretary to spread CORRUPTION in eGovernance of INDIA.

By T AshishThursday, 21 April , 2005, 12:54

National Informatics Centre (NIC), an organisation of the Department of Information Technology (DIT) under the Ministry of Communications & Information Technology (MCIT), is all set to go for an “e-procurement system” for handling tenders for goods, services and engineering contracts.
Being a premier organisation in the field of informatics services and IT applications, NIC has been instrumental in steering ICT applications in government departments at central and states, improving decentralised planning and management. NIC has already established a nationwide ICT network � NICNET known as the Government Network � with gateway nodes at all central government departments, covering all 602 district collectorates for IT services.
The driving force behind the NIC is none other than Dr N Vijayaditya, Director-General, who has recently been honoured with the Skoch Challenger-2005 Award for ICT Man of the Year by Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission, for his contribution and exemplary efforts made in various areas including e-governance and ICT applications. Excerpts from an interview:
NIC has been instrumental in steering ICT applications in the government. What are its objectives?
Since its inception in 1977, NIC has been instrumental in steering ICT applications in the government at Central and State level. Following the directions from the Prime Minister’s Office, the organisation expanded its nationwide ICT network to North East and Jammu & Kashmir, increasing its network to all districts in the country.
The long-term objective of the NIC, as approved by the Planning Commission, Ministry of Finance and the Electronics Commission, is to establish the feasibility of a system for the provision of detailed information to government ministries and agencies to assist them in making decisions relating to the country�s economic and social development planning and program implementation. Missed last week’s Thursday Interview? Click here

The NIC was set up with the objective to promote economic, social scientific and technological activities, and also for macro-economic adjustment program of the Government, through the applications of IT.
Can you share some of NIC�s national project and state-level projects?
NIC has conceptualised, developed and implemented a very large number of projects for various central and state government ministries, department and organisations.
Many of these projects are continuing projects being carried out by various divisions of NIC across the country, touching upon all spheres of e-governance and thereby influencing the lives of millions of citizens of India.
Some prestigious projects include: Agricultural Marketing Information Network (AgmarkNet), Central Passport System (CPS), Community Information Centres (CICs), Computerised Rural Information System Project (CRISP), Court Information System (COURTIS), Department of Agriculture Network (DACNET), Land Records Information System, Land Records Information System (LRIS), Public Grievances Redress and Monitoring System (PGRAMS). The NIC has undertaken several e-government projects, including online secretariat in Karnataka.
What are your focus areas for this year?
NIC is focusing on a few areas, including e-procurement, GIS, and security. After initial process, the organisation has finalised an e-procurement solution from C1 India. We will soon deploy the solution in our existing system. We are also giving equal importance to GIS and security.

You have been selected for the ICT Man of the Year Award. Can you share your views on this?
I am happy to receive the award from Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission. Skoch is a multinational Strategy and Management Consultancy Company working towards ICT led competitive advantage India possesses across segments.
Every year, Skoch confers the Challenger Awards to people, projects, organisations & technologies that went the extra mile and made an impact in India’s ICT led competitive advantage.
The award recognises and acknowledges excellence and exemplary efforts made by individuals and organisations for their contribution in key areas such as e-governance, BFSI, academic excellence, ICT penetration, affordable computing & innovation.
Every year hundreds of �best-in-class� contenders compete for recognition at the Challenger Awards.
________________________________

WHAT ACTIONS NIC has taken in DGS&D – C1 eProcurement ?
What role NIC has played in the eProcurement
____________________________________

Re: [eGovINDIA] DGS&D – C1 eProcurement contracts under investigation /

[eGovINDIA] DGS&D – C1 eProcurement contracts under investigation

“E. Verwalten” <everwalten@gmail.com> wrote:

Indian Express Investigation 30th March 2008
http://www.indianexpress.com/story/290086.html

Indian Express Investigation 8th April 2008
http://www.indianexpress.com/story/293851.html

_______________________________________________

Pls read this artlicle about C1 india chief Mr.Suresh Nanda!!!!

http://www.indianexpress.com/ie/daily/20010316/ian16051.html

Nanda is the name of the game

________________________________

The following article was published in the below mentioned URL, please
go through the same.

http://www.business-standard.com/search/storypage_new.php?leftnm=lmnu1&leftindx=1&lselect=1&autono=185604

More interesting articles......!!!!

... According to Jain, Suresh Nanda of the Crown Corporation paid them
 Rs.one crore
for the help in getting the order of 250 Armored Recovery Vehicles for
 a ... 

www.ganashakti.com/old/2001/010326/nation1.htm 

...........As soon as he became the defence minister, after six or
 seven months� TEHELKA:
Okay. RK JAIN: Suresh Nanda approached me for armoured recovery
 vehicle. ...
www.tehelka.com/home/20041009/operation/investigation21.htm 

... NEW DELHI, March 10: A city court today granted two weeks to police
 to file reply
to an application of Suresh Nanda, father of the main accused Sanjeev
 Nanda ...
www.indianexpress.com/ie/daily/19990311/ige11025.html 

... The chargesheet says that Sanjiv Nanda, son of arms dealer Suresh
 Nanda was accompanied by Manik Kapoor when the former's BMW car killed
 six persons including ...
www.indianexpress.com/ie/daily/19990409/ige09182.html

____________________________________________________

eProcurement Case Background

1. October 2000
Information Technology Act 2000 was passed. Use of 128 Bit SSL & Digital
Certificate made mandatory for ecommerce activities. As per IT ACT 2000 for
any electronic document to be legally valid, it should be digitally signed by
Digital Certificate issued by any Liscensed Certifyign Agency (CA) approve by
Controller of Certifying Agency (CCA).

2. September 2001
Government of Andhra Pradesh (GoAP) Core implementation committee was
formed to implement eProcurement and PWC (Price water house coopers was
appointed as consultant). They were paid Rs. 1.75 Cr for 5 projects, approx Rs. 35Lakh/Project as consultancy fee. Ref. pwc hired as consultant.pdf.

3. Feb 2002
CCA granted license to Safescrypt on 5th February, 2002, India’s first CA.
SAFESCRYPT Ltd, a Satyam Infoway company affiliated with VeriSign Inc,
issued the country’s first digital signature certificate to the Minister for
Communications and IT & Parliamentary Affairs, Mr Pramod Mahajan, at an
official ceremony here on Wednesday.
SafeScrypt is the first Indian company to get a certifying authority licence for
digital signature from the Controller of Certifying Authorities (CCA). The
company received this licence earlier this week.

4. In Feb 2002,
Department of Public Relation, Madhya Pradesh floated a tender for eTendering,
eProcurement which categorically specified that IT ACT 2000 needs to be
complied and Digital Certificate/SSL/PKI should be used to ensure secrecy of
price bid. No MNC consultant appointed to draft tender document. 5 Companies
participate in the same including Applitech Tenercity.com I Pvt. Ltd (Tendercity),
NexTenders, ITI/Antares, CNet, etc.

5. May 2002
Sometime in May 2002, GoAP floated a Tender for eProcurement software more
specifically eTendering and Reverse Auction engine by Govt. of AP. No mention
of PKI/SSL/Digital Certificate � what was Rs. 35 Lakh paid to then to PWC?

6. Mid 2002
Out of many bidders who had submitted the tender a consortium comprising of
C1 India Pvt. Ltd., Microsoft & Antares System Ltd & Compaq had submitted the
bid. Other bidders included companies like Wipro and consortium of Boradvision
and TCS. Consortium head by C1 India Pvt. Ltd (C1) won the tender. GoAP
approves rate of Rs.4500/Tender (GoAP Pays) & 0.24% of the Tender Value
(winning bidder pays to C1 India Directly)

7. In June 2002,
GoAP enters into a secret agreement with C1 India to do a pilot project and not
the consortium which had won the contract? WHY?

8. On 29 th Jan 2003,
www.eprocurement.gov.in launched without compliance to IT ACT 2000, Digital
Certificate, PKI. GoAP gives lame excuse that since Digital Certificates are not
available, hence the same was not integrated in spite of the fact that first Digital
Certificate was issued to Shri. Promod Mahajan as early as Feb 2002.
What started as a Pilot Project for nine months, gets extended for another 9
month unilaterally in spite of the fact that system did not comply to IT ACT
2000.

9. Jan 2003
C1 India gets a 128 bit SSL Certificate from Verisign for
www.eprocurement.gov.in domain? WHY?
1.) .gov.in domain belongs to only government organizations, how come the same was issued to a private company.
2.) 128 Bit SSL was procured from a US Company, whereas IT Act mandates that it should be procured only from liscensed CA. Why was the same not procured from TCS, Safescrypt.
3.) TCS, Safescrypt would have never issued a 128 Bit SSL certificate to C1 India Pvt. Ltd, as .gov.in domain belongs to only Govt. departments. A US company issued the same without any verification, because they were interested in dollars.

10. March 2003
PWD, Chhattisgarh floats a tender for eTendering with Department of Public
Relations, Madhya Pradesh specifications.
Tendercity, C1 India, Wipro, Antares/ITI, Nex Tener & other 3 companies
participated in the tender. Tender gets awarded to NexTender, a mumbai based
company in spite of Tendercity Being the lowest Bidder.

11. April 2003
C1 quotes to PWD, Chhattisgarh Rs. 1000/Tender as fix service charge
irrespective of Tender Value & No fee to be paid by PWD, Chhattisgarh?
Tendercity shares the same information with GoAP. GoAP calls for a steering
committee and yet no action is taken to revise fee being paid to C1 India i.e.
Rs. 4500/Tender (GoAP pays) & 0.24% of Tender Value (winning bidder pays)

12. July 2003
The first lawsuit under Indian cyber law, Antares Systems Ltd, the Bangalore-
based IT firm, has filed a case against an e-governance project in the Delhi High
Court for alleged infringement of intellectual property rights (IPRs) and unfair
competition. The case has been filed against C1 India Pvt Ltd, a subsidiary of
Nasdaq-listed CommerceOne. The Government of Andhra Pradesh and Principal
Secretary, Department of IT and Communications, AP have been arraigned as
parties.
Antares has urged the Delhi HC that C1 India and the AP Government be
restrained from infringing its copyright in its e-tendering software product
Tenderwizard and from relying upon, in any manner whatsoever, the features of
Tenderwizard, said the company’s Senior Vice-President, Mr R. Kamath.

13. July 2003
India’s First Digitally Singed eTender was enabled by Tendercity for Madhya
Pradesh Poorva Kshetra Vidyut Vitran Company Ltd, Madhya Pradesh Electrictiy
Board, MP (MPPKVVCL, MPSEB,MP). 10 Digital Certificates (TCS) were
issued to contractors across India.

14. December, 2003
Northern Railway floats a Tender for eTendering. C1 India, Wipro/NexTender,
Antares, HCL, Tendercity Participated in the tender. Tender awarded to
HCL/Boradvision Consortium. Rate approved Less than Rs.1500/Tender. GoAP
takes no action and does not revise the service fee it pays to C1 India.

15. Feb 2004
Tendercity writes letter to IT Secretary, GoAP, and Principle Secretary GoAP and bring to their notice that PKI compliance is not there on eprocurement.gov.in and that the eTendering services available at a very competitive rates in open market. No Action taken by the GoAP Officers.

16. Mid 2004
On PWC recommendations, JV option was dropped (JV between eTendering
service provider and Government of AP) and eProcurement services was
continued to be used in ASP model
Why did PWD suggested not to go ahead with JV option? probably because in
case of JV Government of AP would have made a lot of money? Total fee
reimbursed by GoAP & Various Bidder to C1 India in last 3 years is in tune of
Crores of Rupees. If GoAP had procured the software, it would have costed
Rs. 0, because that what C1/PWC quoted to NIC, in December 2004 for
eTendering Software.

17. July 2004
GoAP steering committee meets in October, 2004. Price bid revised to as follows w.e.f. 1 st April 2004 as follows
- GoAP pays nothing � i.e. Rs. 4,500/Tender waived off
- For Tender<50 Cr � each participating bidder pays 0.04% of Tender value or
Rs.10,000/Tender as processing fee, which ever is higher.
- For Tender>50 Cr � each participating bidder pays 0.04% of Tender value or
Rs.25,000/Tender as processing fee, which ever is higher.
- Still the same is very very high compared to open market rates. GoAP Continues with C1 India, when the contract though an illegal contract.
- GoAP accepts non compliance of IT ACT 2002 and yet gives C1 India 6 month
period to make their product PKI enabled, by March 2005. Why, was the project
not scrapped in then and then itself till the PKI compliance was not complete.

18. December 2004
PWC Partners with C1 India for NIC tender for eTendering.
Having played a instrumental role in causing great exchequer loss of GoAP, by
recommending ASP Mode, C1 India reward PWC with partnership for NIC
Tender. C1 ditched PWC (presumably) by quoting Rs.0 as software price to
NIC.

19. 1st April 2005
Digital certificates made mandatory from April 2005. Digital certificate are used
only of Authentication purpose at time of Login. Only price bids are digitally
signed and leaving room for service provider to tamper with technical bids,
document uploaded, etc.

20. Mid 2005
Tendercity alleges of eProcurement scam in one of the reply it filed in Delhi
High Court. The same document is shared with various AP departments, but no
action is taken.

21. 24 thNovember 2005,
Tendercity demonstrate to IT Secretary Shri Narsing Roa, the loopholes and
security defects in www.eprocuremnet.gov.in in person in his chamber. IT
Secretary assures that proper action will be taken against the culprits.
Tendercity gets an invitation from HUDA for demonstration of security loopholes
in the system but the same is postponed by CE after a brief 5 minute meeting.
Reason for postponement not specified. Subsequent meeting doe not take place.

22. 3rdDecember, 2005
Tendercity demonstrates to Principle Secretary & MD APTS the security
loopholes in www.eprocuremnet.gov.in and ideal security features that should be
enabled. Principle Secretary IT&C promise to take the appropriate action.

23. 5th December, 2005
GoAP accepts vide their email dated 5 th December, 2005 that
1.) www.eprocurement.gov.in is property of GoAP
2.) GoAP sees no harm if a 128 Bit SSL Certificate has be procured from USA
instead from a licensed CA as per CCA norms and that too by C1 India. In
layman terms it means a private company owns www.eprocurement.gov.in
3.) GoAP accepts that till December 2005, price bid submitted by 10,000 of
contractors 9800 eTender enabled so far reached the server in readable fashion
without any encryption, but that OK. It’s public money and it can go down the
drain.
4.) GoAP accepts that only C1 India can access the Price bid of contractors, as
they are the system administrator and super Admin of the website. Since no
government office has access to database, and generally they are corrupt the
system is secure. As per GoAP, private company which has been given the
custody of Rs.32,000 Cr. worth of eTender price bid security are trustworthy and
walking gods.
5.) GoAP states that C1 India does not access the readable price bid of all
contractors that is there in Database, and which can be accessed by C1 India
anytime from anywhere. GoAP goes on record that since not a single case of
tampering has been raised, there is nothing wrong with present system and they
have full faith on C1 India. They have full faith on PWC, so what if they partner
with C1 India for other government departments.
6.) GoAP does not care about Antares software being illegally used, since the
matter is sub-judice.
7.) GoAP has accepted that the system was so insecure, that had they told the
contactors and public at large about the security loopholes, no contractor would
have submitted the bid and hence all contractors, public, government officers
were kept in dark about the security loophole.
8.) GoAP has accepted that Detached Signature and Server Side encryption are
international practice as per their MNC consultant PWC, so what if C1 India get
the privilege to access the price bid of each and every contractors.

24. 10 th December, 2005
To cover things up, IT Secretary gives a clean chit to Service provider � C1 India
by means of issuing unsigned certificate making a claim that there is nothing
wrong with the system.
__________________________________

Please read this article.

The E-governance Muddle http://www.dqindia.com/content/search/showarticle.asp?artid=74532

What was expected to bring transparency in government transactions has got mired in a slew of allegations. Dataquest probes the charges made by an IAS officer against his own clan� Shubhendu Parth Friday, September 02, 2005

_________________________________

LOOK at this what NIC has done !!!!!

NIC nexus with C1 INDIA, PWC,

1. In the prequalification criteria Page no.2, item no 2 (VI) NIC said that �the vendor or the prime bidder in the case of consortium should be CMM level 4 or ISO 9000-3 certified�.  (Please note that there is no certification called ISO 9000-3 in this world and it is only the guidelines for software companies.  Through this ITI which has deployed more than 20 eProcurement projects across the country has been prevented from participating in the tender) .
2. Apparently ITI Limited a PSU under MCIT has made a representation to NIC stating that the prequalification criteria is wrong and ITI should be allowed to participate in the tender which has been refused by NIC orally.

3. Further STQC experts also informed that the prequalification criteria is wrong.

4. Without listening to the STQC and ITI, NIC went ahead and executed the tender for eProcurement.

5. Interestingly (??) the consortium of PWC and C1 bagged the order form NIC.

6. How beautiful and professional this entire transaction is:

– The PWC who is the consultant to GOAP is the Prime bidder of Consortium.

- The C1 which bagged the project from GOAP through the recommendations of PWC is the consortium partner.

- Though the pre-qulaification criteria was wrong and ITI as well as STQC have submitted the note to this effect, NIC went ahead and awarded the tender to PWC & C1 consortium.

- Now the NIC along with PWC and C1 can go to any state/central/ PSU and deploy eProcurement project to enhance transparency (??). however there is no transparency in the NIC’s Procement itself?

Now my questions are:

Can NIC Put a wrong Qualification criteria to prevent their own sister concern ITI Limited and do not respond to the representation made by ITI Limited?</ SPAN> Can a consultant (PWC) become the supplier (PWC & C1 consortium)? When a consultant (PWC) recommends some company (C1 ) for the award (in GOAP), can the consultant (PWC) join with the same company (PWC) for another project (NIC) as supplier. Interstingly PWC (Consultant of GOAP project) is also a deployment partner of the C1 (Visit http:// www.c1india. com/partners/ partners. html#)

5. How to put an end to such nonsenses ?

6. Whether NIC is obligated to reply ITI letter or not? NIC can neglet the letter of ITI just like that? Is the legal battle is only the remedy? Is there any authority who can parade these officials on open road puting a necklace of “corrupt officer”?
____________ _________ _________ _________ _________ ____

DGSD has to be asked to explain how it chose its partner C1 INDIA- CVC need to check

DGSD has to be asked to explain how it chose its partner and how it allows C1 India to collect at the rate of Rs.6000-9000 per bidder every year for being a bidder for DGSD?

DGSD is adopted a stand by allowing C1 India to collect annual subscription charges from bidders for using their e-procurement portal which has not been decided through open tender.

TCS, DGSD … the list grows : how to deprieve India in the name of technology? Re: [eGovINDIA] EGov – eBusiness Strategies For Government

This write up is purely in the interest of the nation and it speaks about technology. The intention is not to cricitcise Government but to tell them that they should look at the technology which is cost effective. They should also learn to look through the cost pushing design of the IT companies/PPP Partners

Government of India’s MCA (Ministry of Company Affairs) e-governance system which is  implemented by  TCS at a huge cost has built in digital signature tool which does  not work on Mozilla Firefox or linux.
TCS is unable to provide linux/Mozilla firefox support for the past 6 months.

As Director of 2-3 companies, I am unable to use the digital signature supplied by NIC (service provided by TCS) for the past 6 months.
ELCOT, as a matter of policy does not use any hardware that does not support linux.
The next thing is to issue notice to TCS under MRTP.
This is one side of the story.

The other side is the VSNL (TCS owned) supported REGINET software of Tamil Nadu which had a similar electronic signature provision. They wanted me to approve for extension of  79 such electonic signatures for the next one year. When I looked at the software design, it was meant to be used only by the intranet users and it had nothing to do with external users. But this system had been imposed by the vendors to sell over 500 such e-signatures at a cost of Rs.900 per e-sign every year. I was under pressure to approve the expenditure as the services came down after the expiry date.

ELCOT put a team to study the system design. Within two hours they got over the issue. The same e-signature dongles work for a different design. No need to pay TCS or anyone else. The beauty is that it can work forever, without payment to anyone.

__________________________

DGS&D – C1 eProcurement contracts under investigation

“E. Verwalten” <everwalten@gmail.com> wrote:

Indian Express Investigation 30th March 2008
http://www.indianexpress.com/story/290086.html

Indian Express Investigation 8th April 2008
http://www.indianexpress.com/story/293851.html

_______________________

Just because some American company wanted to sell its product we are blindly looking at e-signature for everything and thus end up pushing up the cost. Companies such as TCS look for pushing up the cost of e-governnace which is patriotic to the least.

TCS does not have any knowledge about platform independent technology, more so OSS technology and thus its costing is on the high side. Unfortunately the States as well as the central government do not have people who have hands on experience and hence e-gov solutions end up providing just revenues to the software companies without any tangible benefits to the citizens.

In the case of DCA, the users can simply do with user id and password. But they were forced to buy the digital signature from TCS. To use the digital signaturethe the companies have to buy Windows OS! After all these, the user is not able to get any great service from them. Every year, the companies have to shell out user charges to TCS for the digital signature. For every director on the Board the amount is collected. With over 400000 registered companies in India employing roughly 4 million directors, TCS is happily collecting Rs.10000 for one time charge and Rs.6000 per director every year! As the money does not go from the exchequer, there is no question from the CAG/AG/Audit teams. But this is a leakage of citizens money which is to be prevented.

A similar deprievation is on through VISA card system when India could have its own payment gateway for credit card / debit card payments. Everytime a VISA card is used a minimum of 1.6% of the collection goes to USA!
Japan has prevented it by not allowing credit cards in its shopping operations. But India, as usual has been sleeping by allowing the rampant use of VISA cards. It should go for its own credit card gateway or encourage cash purchase following the Japan pattern.

NIC nexus with C1 INDIA, PWC, -Is there TRANSPARENCY in NIC activities ?

NIC nexus with C1 INDIA, PWC,

LOOK at this what NIC has done !!!!!

NIC nexus with C1 INDIA, PWC,

1. In the prequalification criteria Page no.2, item no 2 (VI) NIC said that �the vendor or the prime bidder in the case of consortium should be CMM level 4 or ISO 9000-3 certified�.  (Please note that there is no certification called ISO 9000-3 in this world and it is only the guidelines for software companies.  Through this ITI which has deployed more than 20 eProcurement projects across the country has been prevented from participating in the tender) .
2. Apparently ITI Limited a PSU under MCIT has made a representation to NIC stating that the prequalification criteria is wrong and ITI should be allowed to participate in the tender which has been refused by NIC orally.

3. Further STQC experts also informed that the prequalification criteria is wrong.

4. Without listening to the STQC and ITI, NIC went ahead and executed the tender for eProcurement.

5. Interestingly (??) the consortium of PWC and C1 INDIA bagged the order form NIC.

6. How beautiful and professional this entire transaction is:

– The PWC who is the consultant to GOAP is the Prime bidder of Consortium.

- The C1 INDIA which bagged the project from GOAP through the recommendations of PWC is the consortium partner.

- Though the pre-qulaification criteria was wrong and ITI as well as STQC have submitted the note to this effect, NIC went ahead and awarded the tender to PWC & C1 consortium.

- Now the NIC along with PWC and C1 INDIA can go to any state/central/ PSU and deploy eProcurement project to enhance transparency (??). however there is no transparency in the NIC’s Procement itself?

Now questions to NIC are:

Can NIC Put a wrong Qualification criteria to prevent their own sister concern ITI Limited and do not respond to the representation made by ITI Limited?

Can a consultant (PWC) become the supplier (PWC & C1 consortium)?

When a consultant (PWC) recommends some company (C1 ) for the award (in GOAP), can the consultant (PWC) join with the same company (PWC) for another project (NIC) as supplier.

Interstingly PWC (Consultant of GOAP project) is also a deployment partner of the C1 (Visit http:// www.c1india. com/partners/ partners. html#)

5. How to put an end to such nonsenses ?

6. Whether NIC is obligated to reply ITI letter or not? NIC can neglet the letter of ITI just like that?

Is the legal battle is only the remedy?

Is there any authority who can parade these officials on open road puting a necklace of “corrupt officer”?
____________ _________ _________ _________ _________ ____

About n-Logue and Mr. Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Professor, IIT Madras

n-Logue and Mr. Ashok Jhunjhunwala, Professor, IIT Madras,

News is that Mr. Ashok Jhunjhunwala resigned from n-Logue Directorship ?

What is going to happen to all the FRANCHISEES ?

What happened to all the funds that were funded?

What happened to money given by Franchisees ??

Any one knows about this ??

What is the status of n-Logue now ?

Mr. Ashok Jhunjhunwla associated with MSSRF ??

M.S. Swaminathan
Research Foundation
3rd Cross Street, Institutional Area
Taramani, Chennai – 600 113, INDIA
Tel: +91-44-2254 1229, 2254 1698
Fax: +91-44-2254 1319
executivedirector@mssrf.res.in
www.nva-mssrf.org, www.mssrf.org

___________________________________

Cheating in the name of e-governance. The case of n-logue and Mr.Ashok Jhunjanwalla:

In the name of providing connectivity and internet to the rural masses, the women self help groups of TamilNadu and elsewhere are being deprived of their livelihood by a clever business plan played by Prof.Ashok Jhunjanwalla of IIT, Madras.

This scam is targeted at the subsidy money received by the women self help groups from Government of India. Though the said IIT Professor knows that a 32 kbps outdated wireless system is not good enough for video conferencing, he has been promoting falsehood only to gain income though business.

Mr.Jhunjanwalla is a Director in the company which markets this outdated wireless product. It is to be noted that every district has a District Blindness Control society headed by the respective District Collectors which monitors and supports blindness control.

The entire funding comes from international agencies. Thousands of poor people get 100% financial assistance every year through this exercise.

Whereas Mr.Jhunjanwalla has been promoting falsehood by stating that his outdated wireless system could provide a solution to the blindness of the people through video conferencing (Tele medicine).

What could never be accepted in urban India is being sold to the rural women self help groups using Government contacts/orders with no benefit accruing to the poor women.

The Govt may look into this affair and stop the cheating that goes in the name of e-governance.

_______________________________________________________

________________________________________

[PDF]

Mission 2007

File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat – View as HTML
Information Village project of MSSRF, ITC’s e-choupal, Drishtee’s Info Kiosks, n-Logue’s ….. (Dr Ashok Jhunjhunwala,. Faculty IIT, Chennai) …
www.gkpeventsonthefuture.org/marketofopportunities/common/index.cfm?fuseaction=download&documentid=268

`This year 24 Indian cities will deploy CorDECT’

But Mr Ashok Jhunjhunwala, the father of CorDECT Wirelss in Local Loop (WLL), … Recently, the TeNeT Group has participated in the formation of n-Logue, …
www.financialexpress.com/old/fe/daily/20010205/fco05007.html – 21k -

Project floated to provide Net, voice connectivity to villages

… will be formally launched on January 25, said Mr Ashok Jhunjhunwala, professor, IIT Madras. Meanwhile, n-Logue Communications, a company, which has been …
www.financialexpress.com/old/fe/daily/20010116/efe16006.html –

SAVE RTI in INDIA-GOOD RESPONSE in Karnataka State-” SMS CAMPAIGN – RULE 14 “

Request to all Citizens of INDIA to ACT on this  ” SMS CAMPAIGN – RULE 14 ” and SAVE RTI Act in INDIA.

Let us show the all BUREAUCRATS that Citizens of INDIA means Business.

IT’S OUR RIGHT. An inalienable right has been conferred on citizens.

`Right to Information Act will empower common people’

The legislative intent is clear; we are entitled to know how our money is spent. The onus is on us to make the Act work.

In effect, therefore, the right conferred on the citizen is an exhaustive one. It allows him to assess and examine every government decision, to study the reasons recorded by the government for taking a particular step, and to utilise information so gathered to ensure that government acts in a transparent and just manner.

Indeed, the preamble to the Act puts it well when it says, “democracy requires an informed citizenry and transparency of information” and adds these “are vital to its functioning and also to contain corruption and to hold Governments and their instrumentalities accountable to the governed”.

SMS message to send is:

SIC KKM sir,
“Your Malafides proved in amending RTI rules — We demand your resignation to ensure Supremacy of Democracy”

______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________ ______________

Karnataka State Information Commissioner for Right to Information Act is   Mr. K. K. Mishra.

The mobile numbers for KKM are:

1.   9448291111 ,
2.    9844491100

Please SMS the above message to SIC KKM.

Please tell your friends to do the same. Send this to as many as possible. So that we can put presurre on SIC  KKM.

______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________ __________

THERE ARE SEVERAL REASONS for this ” SMS CAMPAIGN- RULE 14 “

Please go through the following Statements:

A. On March 15th 2008, In Raichur, SIC K K Mishra as per Hindu article,

RTI Act is fine, says Misra .

Raichur: The former Chief Secretary and State Chief Information Commissioner K.K. Misra has said that there was no need to bring any amendment to the Right to Information Act (2005).

Mr. Misra was here on Friday to attend to some pending cases related to the Act.

He said the Act had been formulated with an intention to streamline the administration and protect the interest of the public.

http://www.hindu. com/2008/ 03 /15/stories/ 2008031553050300 .htm

______________________________

______________________________ ______________________________ ___

B. On April 19th 2008 meeting with RTI Activists SIC K K Mishra told them that he did not know anything about the Ammended Rule 14 of the RTI Rules , which Empowers an PIO to limit replying to RTI Request for only one first Question , if the RTI Request is covering two are more Subjects and is worder beyond 150 Words .

______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________ ______

C. As per Hindu article dated APRIL 20, 2008, says RTI: new rule restricts quantum of information.

It looks like SIC K K Mishra was responsible to bring about chnages to RTI Act 2005 in Karnataka State. Please read the article below. URL is provided. Thanks to RTI Activist Mr. Y. G. Muralidhran from CREAT to explain these things clearly to Hindu paper, other press people and to general Public.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04 /20/stories/2008042057940100 .htm

BANGALORE: It has come to light that the Karnataka Information Commission (KIC) recommended that the State Government amend the Karnataka Right to Information (RTI) Rules 2005 to restrict the quantum of information sought in a single application.

This was discovered by Y.G. Muralidharan, consumer rights activist and founder of Consumer Rights Education and Awareness Trust (CREAT), who evoked the RTI Act only to receive this startling piece of information.

“Having grown in a culture of secrecy, the tendency to find reasons for denying information to the citizens is not surprising. But one never expected that the KIC would advise the Government to take the drastic step of amending the rules, which cuts the roots of citizens’ right to information,” Mr. Muralidharan told The Hindu.

______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________ _______

” KKM Malafidely has given misleading statement that RTI does not need any Ammendement and KKM became instrumental in Ammending the RTI rules to curtail citizens right, as such KKM has become tainted, hence KKM need to resign honorably to ensure supremacy of democracy “

______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________ ___________

There are other reasons also why SIC KKM need to RESIGN. Please go through the following.

D. on May 3, 2005 the Karnataka State High Court directed that a complaint of perjury be filed against Misra for “knowingly withholding important facts and documents from the Hon’ble High Court of Karnataka and making false statements in the affidavits filed in this Court.”

______________________________ ______________________________ _________________

The above events shows the CHARACTER and INTEGRITY of K K Mishra.

Also KKM’s appointment as SIC is allready in question since 2005.

With all these things how can KKM continue as SIC of GoK ???

How did GoK appointed K K MIshra as the SIC of GoK with all the baggage.

______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________ _______________________________

Now it is very clear that Shri.K. K. Mishra is:

ž       Not a person having Eminence In Public Life, hence not qualified to the office of the State Chief Information Commissioner.

ž       Prima facie held to be involved in an offence involving moral turpitude, by Hon’ble High Court of Karnataka, which as good as conviction.

ž       Has acquired such financial or other interest as is likely to affect prejudicially his functions as the State Chief Information Commissioner or a State Information Commissioner.

______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________ _______

Please read this SC ruling:

Any officer whose integrity is doubtful should not be promoted to a sensitive post.
—————————————————————————————–
Supreme court Orders Transfer Of UP Chief Secretary within 7 days

Just recently Supreme Court of INDIA has given a ruling that a tainted person should not be occupying a SENSITIVE and RESPONSIBLE POST in the State of UP.

SCIC is such a Sensitive and Responsible post.
————————————————————————–
SC tells UP govt to shift Neera Yadav

http://www.ndtv.com/topstories /showtopstory.asp?id=17905 &frmsrch=1&txtsrch=Chief +Secretary+of+UP <http://www.ndtv.com/topstories /showtopstory.asp?id=17905 &frmsrch=1&txtsrch=Chief +Secretary+of+UP>

NDTV Correspondent

Thursday, October 6, 2005 (New Delhi):

The Supreme Court has directed the Uttar Pradesh government to shift controversial official Neera Yadav from the post of Chief Secretary within seven days.

______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________ _______________

KK Mishra’s has lost his Integrity as per High Court Order of Karnataka State //

KK Mishra is a TAINTED PERSON // TAINTED PERSON can’t be occupying Sensitive and Responsible post. //

KK Mishra was sworn on Saturday 30/7/2005, BEFORE the retirement date of 31/07/2005. This as per records available from GoK. //

This looks like BOGUS APPOINTMENT of KK Mishra to the post of SIC of Karnataka State.

This was done by then CM Dharm Singh, Opposition Leader Yeddiyurappa and then Information Minister Shivaram.
All these THREE people need to be questioned now.

______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________ _________________

Please read this article.

First RTI appointment runs into trouble
Wednesday September 21 2005 00:00 IST

http://www.newindpress.com /NewsItems.asp?ID=IEH2005092012 3524&Page=H&Title=Top+Stories &Topic=0

TOP STORIES

Sep 21, 2005

NEW DELHI: Even before the Right to Information Act has come into force, the very first and so far the only appointment made under it has provoked a controversy.

Karnataka is the first state to have appointed its chief information commissioner as part of the independent appellate machinery that is required to be in place by October 12 in the states as well as the Centre.

But questions are already being raised on the appointment of the commissioner by the Dharam Singh Government: K K Misra was appointed on July 30 immediately after his retirement as chief secretary of Karnataka.

A local NGO, Ella Kannada Vedike International (E-KAVI), called upon the state Governor to suspend Misra immediately and initiate the process of his removal from office.

Reason: Barely four months ago, the Karnataka High Court passed strictures on Misra in the PIL related to the Rs 2,250 crore Bangalore-Mysore Infrastructure Corridor Project.

The irony is, in its judgment delivered on May 3, the High Court directed that a complaint of perjury be filed against Misra for “knowingly withholding important facts and documents from the Hon’ble High Court of Karnataka and making false statements in the affidavits filed in this Court.”

______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________ _____________________

All of this shows that SIC K K Mishra is a person without CHARACTER and INTEGRITY.

HENCE, EKAVI had written to Governor of Karnataka State in 2005.

______________________________ ______________________________ ______________________________ ___________________

Demand For Removal of Shri.KK Misra, Karnataka State Chief Information Commissioner under Section 17 (3) (b) & 17 (3) (e) of the Right To Information Act-2005.

Demand For Removal of Shri.KK Misra, Karnataka State Chief Information Commissioner under Section 17 (3) (b) & 17 (3) (e) of the Right To Information Act-2005

Sunday, September 18, 2005

To,

The Hon’ble Governor,

Karnataka.

Sub: Demand For Removal of Shri.KK Misra, Karnataka State Chief Information Commissioner under Section 17 (3) (b) & 17 (3) (e) of the Right To Information Act-2005

Sir,

We wish to bring following acts of omissions during implementation of the Right To Information Act-2005 by Government Of Karnataka:

1. Section 15 of the Right To Information Act-2005 stipulates a minimum qualification for a candidate who shall be appointed as State Chief Information Commissioner, which are as under:

” The State Chief Information Commissioner and the State Information Commissioners shall be Persons Of Eminence In Public Life with wide knowledge and experience in Law, Science And Technology, Social Service, Management, Journalism, Mass Media Or Administration And Governance.”

2. We understand that that Mr.KK Misra who has been appointed as State Chief Information Commissioner vide notification number DPAR 77 RTI 2005 Bangalore Dated 30th July 2005, does not have the required qualifications for appointment as State Chief Information Commissioner.

3. The basic qualification required is of “Eminence In Public Life”. Government of Karnataka has been directed by Hon’ble High Court of Karnataka to File criminal cases against Shri.KK Misra and prosecute him as under:

ž Under Sec. 340 of Cr.PC for “Knowingly Withholding Important Facts And Documents from the Hon’ble High Court of Karnataka and Making False Statements In The Affidavits Filed In This Court” in the Rs 2,250 Crores Bangalore Mysore Infrastructure Corridor Project Case.

ž On charges of ” Perjury And Withholding “ documents in the Rs 2,250 Crores Bangalore Mysore Infrastructure Corridor Project Case. Hon’ble High Court of Karnataka also directed the Registrar General to file a complaint in this regard under section 388 Cr.PC.

4. A person who Lies And Cheats to Hon’ble High Court of Karnataka as above cannot be called as a Person Of Eminence In Public Life.

5. Shri.KK Misra’s appointment seems to have been made fraudulently violating the stipulated norms as laid down under section 15 of the Right To Information Act-2005, which are as follows:

ž There is no documentary proof in public knowledge that, a meeting of the committee formed for the appointment of State Chief Information Commissioner was held. Hence it seems only minutes were drawn

ž In view of the circumstantial evidence in above Para it can be deduced that List of eligible candidates for appointment as State Chief Information Commissioner was never prepared.

ž Speaker of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly and Chairman of the Karnataka Legislative Council were never consulted while appointing Shri.KK Misra as State Chief Information Commissioner, which is the normal practice in any appointments made by government to important positions.

6. It appears that Shri.KK Misra has appointed himself as State Chief Information Commissioner by abusing his position of Chief Secretary to Government of Karnataka. It is very brazen attempt to misuse his official capacity as he retired on 31^st July 2005 and Appointed as State Chief Information Commissioner on the same day i.e. 31^st July 2005

7. A bureaucrat who presided over the state govt administration till recently cannot be considered independent enough to be the final apex appellate authority under the Right To Information Act. There would be disputes regarding requisitioning of information elicited from government functionaries when he was the chief secretary. He cannot legally/morally decide these disputes now as the information commissioner.

8. This principle is followed scrupulously by the judiciary. Judges do not hear cases where any person who was their client while their practicing law figures in, or if there is anyone closely related, closely connected etc involved. The matter is passed on to other judges.

9. Here we have only one chief information commissioner. Even if we presume that such matters will be passed on to the information commissioners, it must be noted that they are subordinate to the chief info commissioner who continues to be the boss and final arbitrator of the decision being dished out by the commission. So we cannot have such a person as State Chief Information Commissioner.

10. His continuation in the post will seriously jeopardize / violate people’s fundamental right to information which has been upheld as an integral part of article 13 (1) of the constitution of India.

11. From all above submissions it becomes clear that Shri.KK Misra is prima facie held to be involved in an offence involving moral turpitude, that too by Hon’ble High Court of Karnataka. This as good as conviction, for an institution as important as State Chief Information Commissioner, whose duty is to set up practical regime of right to information for citizens to secure access to information under the control of public authorities, in order to promote transparency and accountability in the working of every public authority.

12. From all above submissions it also becomes clear that Shri.KK Misra has developed Other interest as is likely to affect prejudicially his functions as the State Chief Information Commissioner or a State Information Commissioner.

13. Now it is very clear that Shri.KK Misra is:

ž Not a person having Eminence In Public Life, hence not qualified to the office of the State Chief Information Commissioner.

ž Prima facie held to be involved in an offence involving moral turpitude, by Hon’ble High Court of Karnataka, which as good as conviction.

ž Has acquired such financial or other interest as is likely to affect prejudicially his functions as the State Chief Information Commissioner or a State Information Commissioner.

14. Hence we request you utilise the powers vested in your office and your discretion to act under following Sections of the Right To Information Act-2005 and REMOVE KK MISRA FROM THE POSITION OF STATE CHIEF INFORMATION COMMISSIONER IMEADIATLY To Save Sanctity Of New Born Right To Information Act-2005 for charges summarized in Para number 13:

Section 17 (3): Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), the Governor may by order remove from office the State Chief Information Commissioner or a State Information Commissioner if a State Chief Information Commissioner or a State Information Commissioner, as the case may be,—

Section 17 (3) (b): Has been convicted of an offence which, in the opinion of the Governor, involves moral turpitude; or

Section 17 (3) (e): Has acquired such financial or other interest as is likely to affect prejudicially his functions as the State Chief Information Commissioner or a State Information Commissioner.15. The whole nation is anxiously awaiting your action in this regard. The success or failure of the Right To Information Act-2005 depends upon your quick and rightful action.

Yours Truly,

Copy to:

1. The Hon’ble President of India.

2. The Hon’ble Prime Minister of India.

3. The Hon’ble Chief Minister Of Karnataka.

4. The Hon’ble Dy Chief Minister Of Karnataka.

5. Smt.Sonia Gandhi ji, The Chairperson United Progressive Alliance, The Chairperson National Advisory Council, and President, Indian National Congress, New Delhi.

6. Shri.H.D.Devegowda, Former Prime Minister, National President Janata Dal (Secular) & Member of Parliament.

7. Shri.Prakash Karat, General Secretary, CPI (M).

8. Shri.A.B.Bardhan, General Secretary, CPI (I).

9. Shri.L.K.Advani, Leader of Opposition, Loka Sabha.

10. Shri.Jaswant Singh, Leader of Opposition, Rajya Sabha.

11. The Central Vigilance Commissioner, New Delhi.

12. The Loka Ayukta, Karnataka.

______________________________ ___________________________

DGS&D – C1 eProcurement contracts under investigation

DGS&D – C1 eProcurement contracts under investigation

“E. Verwalten” <everwalten@gmail.com> wrote:
Indian Express Investigation 30th March 2008

Indian Express Investigation 8th April 2008

_________________

———- Forwarded message ———-
From: Venkatappa Kumaraswamy <vmkumaraswamy@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, Apr 10, 2008 at 2:25 PM
Subject: [eGovINDIA] DGS&D – C1 eProcurement contracts under investigation // Re: NIC joined hands with C 1 INDIA in eProcurement Scandle along with NISG, DIT and Govt. of INDIA !! READ THIS:: NIC eProcurement project irregularities in INDIA ???
To: dg@nic.in, ksdir@hub.nic.in, moni@hub.nic.in, mohan@tn.nic.in, lalitha@hub.nic.in, pspillai@hub.nic.in, kashinath@hub.nic.in, bkg@hub.nic.in, yks@nic.in, rpsaxena@hub.nic.in, bose@hub.nic.in, rkg@hub.nic.in, takhan@ub.delhi.nic.in, vsrk@hub.nic.in, sdgupta@hub.nic.in, dash@hub.nic.in, narao@hub.nic.in, shubhag@nic.in, rama@alpha.nic.in, amita@hub.nic.in, ambreesh@hub.nic.in, rgupta@hub.nic.in, anjana@hub.nic.in, padmavati@hub.nic.in, clmr@hub.nic.in, dcmisra@hub.nic.in, andaman@hub.nic.in, sio-ngl@hub.nic.in, sio@ap.nic.in, sio@hp.nic.in, sio-arn@hub.nic.in, sio@jk.nic.in, sio@pondy.pon.nic.in, sio-asm@hub.nic.in, sio-jhr@hub.nic.in, punjab@chd.nic.in, sio-.bih@hub.nic.in, sio@mail.kar.nic.in, sio@raj.nic.in, sio@chdut.nic.in, sio@kerala.nic.in, sio-sik@hub.nic.in, sio-cg@hub.nic.in, sio-laks@hub.nic.in, sio@tn.nic.in, sio-dadra@hub.nic.in, sio@mp.nic.in, sio-trpr@hub.nic.in, daman@guj.nic.in, siomsu@hub.nic.in, upstate@up.nic.in, skapoor@hub.nic.in, sio-man@hub.nic.in, manipur@msu.man.nic.in, utrnchal@up.nic.in, sio@goa.nic.in, sio-megh@hub.nic.in, sio@shillong.meg.nic.in, sio@wbsu.wb.nic.in, sio@guj.nic.in, sio-mizo@hub.nic.in, pratik@hub.nic.in, sastry@hub.nic.in, anshul@hub.nic.in, zsingh@hub.nic.in, mohan@hub.nic.in, cjairath@hub.nic.in, nagesh@hub.nic.in, vvsm@hub.nic.in, sbanerjee@hub.nic.in, harsh@hub.nic.in, rajput@hub.nic.in, gahlout@envfor.delhi.nic.in, shetty@cad.delhi.nic.in, opgoel@hub.nic.in, spr@hub.nic.in, ranjna@hub.nic.in, amishra@hub.nic.in, subodh@hub.nic.in, skr@hub.nic.in, hrn@hub.nic.in, srajiv@nic.in, bali@hub.nic.in, rverma@alpha.nic.in, shukla@hub.nic.in, krishan@nic.in, Miurmila@hub.nic.in, rpkapoor@hub.nic.in, msrao@hub.nic.in, nautiyal@hub.nic.in, pandey@sansad.nic.in, drjdass@hub.nic.in, rakesh@alpha.nic.in, vsharma@hub.nic.in, sksinha@hub.nic.in, rsingh@hub.nic.in, hps@ub.nic.in, Traiyks@nic.in, jkghosh@hub.nic.in, mchandra@alpha.nic.in, rgera@alpha.nic.in, kkumar@hub.nic.in, neeta@hub.nic.in, hpsharma@hub.nic.in, kalra@sb.nic.in
Cc: VMK <vmkumaraswamy@gmail.com>, minister@mit.gov.in, mos@mit.gov.in, secretary@mit.gov.in, srinath@mit.gov.in, rgilani@mit.gov.in, ekavi VEMAKU <ekavikumaraswamy@gmail.com>, “E. Verwalten” <everwalten@gmail.com>, egovindia <egovindia@yahoogroups.com>, ellakavi@yahoogroups.com

[eGovINDIA] DGS&D – C1 eProcurement contracts under investigation

“E. Verwalten” <everwalten@gmail.com> wrote:

Indian Express Investigation 30th March 2008

Indian Express Investigation 8th April 2008

On Thu, Jan 18, 2007 at 7:16 PM, Venkatappa Kumaraswamy <vmkumaraswamy@gmail.com> wrote:

NIC joined hands with C 1 INDIA in eProcurement Scandle along with NISG, DIT and Govt. of INDIA !! READ THIS:: NIC eProcurement project irregularities in INDIA ???

http://egovindia.wordpress.com/2007/01/19/nic-joined-hands-with-c-1-india-in-eprocurement-scandle-along-with-nisg-dit-and-govt-of-india-read-this-nic-eprocurement-project-irregularities-in-india/

Does Prime Minister of INDIA want to LEGITAMIZE eProcurement scandle ? – IT Secretary RAO of AP writes: You are absolutely right on this one. We gave totally misleading figures.

http://egovindia.wordpress.com/2007/01/16/does-prime-minister-of-india-want-to-legitamize-eprocurement-scandle-it-secretary-rao-of-ap-writes-you-are-absolutely-right-on-this-one-we-gave-totally-misleading-figures/

What NIC is doing now ??

NIC needs to answer to the NATION !!

THIS IS WHAT eGovINDIA Group has written about NIC !!
Still NIC needs to answer to the eProcurement Scandle of INDIA !

Why NIC and NICSI sidelined ? Why NISG formed ? Derailing of eGovernance of INDIA by forming NISG by then Jt. Secretary of eGovernance NOW Add’l Secretary of eGovernance at DIT/MIT and CEO of NISG.

Proper eGovernance is the need of future !!

Bureaucracy of IAS Officers in eGovernance.

For effective implementation of RTI Act 2005 INDIA needs proper eGovernace in INDIA.

India lacks co-ordination on e-gov: NKC

http://right2information.wordpress.com/2006/06/12/india-lacks-co-ordination-on-e-gov-nkc/

HUMILIATION / VICTIMISATION / MARGINALISATION OF IT SCIENTISTS OF NIC BY BUREAUCRACY OF IAS OFFICERS.

Subject:- Information Technology (IT) Scientist of National Informatics Centre (NIC) of Dept. of IT are being denied rightful promotion under Flexible Complimentary Scheme (FCS) of Fifth Pay Commission and , thus, they are being Victimized, marginalized and even targeted of elimination from government by IAS Bureaucracy

Dear Sirs/ Madam

It is tribute to dynamic and visionary  leadership of honorable  Sh. Rajiv  Gandhi  who had been architect behind the establishment of National Informatics Centre (NIC)  during late Eighties to make India becoming the first country in the world to achieve E-governance. It was one of the many scientific Institutes  he had established to see India prosper and developed through embarking on a  high level Knowledge society in India.

Some of the following subsequent actions taken particularly by your present government was great discouragement and humiliation for the IT scientist in particular :

The result of the Reviewed NIC  IT scientist-G  ( JS equivalent) under FCS ( Flexible Complimentary Scheme under central government of India) has been kept in abeyance for last one year and their calm, quiet and dedicated patience has been misused by new bureaucratic officials in Cabinet Secretariat to make the IT scientist suffer and get domoralised even though IT scientist of NIC are the main stake holder in Department of IT justifying the significance of DIT.

It is understood that IAS bureaucracy is trying to discontinue the Flexible Complimentary scheme (FCS) which has been formulated by  His excellency Shri Rajiv Gandhi ex-prime minister of India for promotion of scientific bodies  for building scientific knowledge society in India. In view of this  all the recommendations for promotion to Scientist-G ( Joint secy. Equivalent)  from the scientific ministries  including NIC, DIT and DST etc. are kept in abeyance in cabinet secretaries and DOPT for last one year.

1. Scientific Contribution made to govt. sector by NIC IT Scientist.

NIC scientist have done many firsts/ second in the world in IT sector in govt. of  India during end 1980 when many countries including USA Govt. had not done in govt. sector.

1. Indian govt. is the first in the world to have such nodal computerization agency NIC for developing ICT applications for achieving e-governance in govt. sector.

2. NIC Scientist have established the 1^st widespread VSAT based  Wide Area (WAN) named NICNET of Indian govt. Network in the World covering all Districts/State/Central governments of Indian Union. (that time USA has the first V-Sat based Network but is was in some of its states not wide spread up to grass root level like in India)

3. They have made  Indian govt. the 1^st in the world in establishing computer center and LAN in all district/ state/central govt. offices including Leh and Andaman Nicober, Lakskhwadeep and Daman Diu.

4. They have made Indian govt. the 1^st in the world to have Video Conference facility even at the remotest district/ state/central govt. level

5. They have made India 1^st in the world during 1980s by declaring Indian Election result Live through VSAT communications up to district level

6. NIC IT scientist has established more than 700 computer centers, LAN and VSATs at district/state/ central govt. departments including research and public sector organizations of Government of India for providing E-mail/ internet connectivity and application software solutions. They have been effectively maintaining the services in all govt. sectors in India and adapting to new IT advancements.

7. They have been providing hands on computer training to all govt. staff and officers at district/state/central govt. offices for imparting computer cultures in India.

8. During mid eighties ( when there was almost no IT Pvt. Sector in India) NIC IT  professionals have developed/ implemented various e-governance software at district/state/central govt. offices after studying, analyzing and designing databases in accordance to the requirement of govt. officials at various levels.

9. NIC IT Scientists have been designing/developing/ maintaining more than 1000 web sites of various districts/state/central govt. offices and research and public sector organizations for providing better citizen services.

10. NIC has the state of the art advanced ICT infrastructures and IT specialization in various application areas.

The spectrum of services provided by NIC encompasses various dimensions of the Information Technology Arena .

II. How they do it and with what resources.

1. 3,500 strong young IT professionals enrolled in end-1980s with having strong educational background of Ph.D., M.Tech, MCA from reputed Universities and national institutes like IIT are the main motivator who have been working at grass root level of district/state/central govt. offices to provide sustainable computer culture in India.

1. They prepare/manage the computer center, install hardware, install software, maintain day – to – day computer up keeping, provide individual attention of each and every user staff, understand their requirement and understand their priority and slowly and steadily bring computer culture in the govt. offices all over India. Whatever is achieved till date in govt. computerization it is due to devotion and perseverance of each and every NIC official.

1. NIC has been provided with annual budget  around  Rs. 200 crores for provision of salary of its employees and for providing hardware, software, LAN, WAN and their maintenance of more than 700 computer centers. This also includes the expenditure of hiring of internet bandwidth. If we consider the annual budget of any important research institute of ICAR, IIT, ICMR and CSIR it would range from 500 to 600 crores. NIC annual budget of Rs. 200 crores in comparison to this is meager amount and the gamut of IT services provided by NIC for the govt. sector will well be worth of more than thousand crores per annum in IT market of India.

1. The maximum amount of salary of a Director level scientist of NIC is Rs.35,000 which is much less than even the salary of junior most IT professional ( Rs. 50,000) in Indian IT market. Maximum of NIC IT Scientist ( who have been working in govt. sector for various of their personal reasons and national interest) worth even more capable in IT efficiency and proficiency than the their counter part in IT industry in India.

III. Humiliation, marginalisation and attempt of elimination of IT Scientist by Bureaucracy ( IAS officials) –Political Nexus

1. IAS officers and NIC IT scientists are the only central govt. officials who have been working in grass root level at district/state/ central govt. offices. Mostly, IAS officials being autocratic and having absolute administrative and financial powers they do not have any specific agenda for e-governance and try to define what suits their personal interest undermining the role of NIC officials and the IT infrastructure available to them.

2. The growing popularity of N IC officials among local and regular staffs of the govt. at district/state/central govt. offices for achieving transparency in govt. functions is misconstrued as threat to the supremacy of IAS official, therefore they try to marginalize and humiliate the NIC officials in order to make the govt. functions according to their whims without any goal and desire to make govt. functions  transparent for providing better citizen services.

3. In consequence of above, NIC was brought into bureaucratic control by merging with Department of Information and Technology (DIT) five years back. Since then, slowly and steadily, bureaucratic (IAS) officials through minister are attempting to eliminate the NIC officials by stopping promotion on Flexible Complimentary Scheme (FCS) so that they would loose motivation and ultimately theses motivated young and highly educated govt. IT professionals could be made dead-horse by the bureaucrat making them easy for its elimination from govt. In similar fashion, they have almost killed Indian Statistical Service (ISS) and Indian Economic Service (IES) which have been created by great planner Dr. Mahalonobis to bring effective planning at grass root and national level. They have been continuously marginalizing other 21 services of Govt. of India.

4. Being very close to Politicians/Ministers right from their service at cadre level, the IAS officials could misguide and give wrong impression about functioning of NIC and other services to the former for achieving their goal of supremacy over any other govt. services.

5. During the last five years IAS officers have created more than 25 IT Secretaries in State Govt. and more than 50 JS(IT) in Central Govt. These IT secretaries and JS(IT)s hardly have any IT experience and in spite of that they used to have IT manager tenure ranging from six months to the maximum of two years during which some of the corrupt officers outsource the procurement of IT products and system analysis, design, development of web sites and various other systems ignoring the advice and presence of NIC official. It may be mentioned that IT related activities outsourced by various departments and state govt. either are fractured or abandoned midway after huge amount of govt. money being spent by bureaucrat. Thus undisputed administrative and financial power of IAS officers at various level is the hindrance of any effective e-governance system in govt. sector in India.

IV. NIC has been considered as threat/ stumbling block for corrupt politicians/ bureaucracy/ Pvt. IT Vendors, therefore, it is being fragmented/isolated

1. Since last 25 years NIC has been following sound and fair track record of procurement of hardware, software, networking and consultancy services in competitive prices through a transparent and standard evaluation process. In view of this, many central and state govt. organizations used to procure IT products through NIC services Inc NICSI.  Politicians – bureaucrat nexus could not favour the IT vendor for corrupt practices, therefore, Chairmanship of NICSI has been changed now from DG(NIC) to an IAS officer. The fate of NICSI will happen as it has happened to many sick PSUs.

2. Govt. e-governance systems are basically open ended in nature. NIC officials have  been steadily developing the system after understanding the requirement analysis and the capability of the users to adopt and adapt to new systems by actively involving themselves in the process of development and implementation. Our govt. systems are very complex and these systems are evolutionary in nature and therefore have to be evolved by taking along with varied level of efficient and proficient staff so that there would be no antipathy to introduction of e-governance software. There is no short cut for sustainable implementation of E-governance software in govt. sector. Since IAS officer has short tenure and he wants to get it done immediately by outsourcing to Pvt vendors   in his biased way in very short span of time lot of govt. money and unplanned efforts gets wasted without any achievement in this direction.

In spite of that, during the last three years IAS officer have created more than 25 IT secretaries in state govt. and more that 50 JS(IT) in central govt. These IT secretaries and JS(IT)s hardly have any IT experience and in spite of that they used to have IT manager tenure ranging from six months to the maximum of two years during which some of the corrupt officers out sources the procurement of IT products and system analysis, design, development of web sites and various other system ignoring the advice and presence of NIC official. It may be mentioned that IT related activities outsourced by various departments and state govt. either are fractured or abandoned midway after huge amount of govt. money being spend by bureaucrat. Thus undisputed administrative and financial power of IAS officers at various level is the hindrance of any effective e-governance system in govt. sector in India.

3. Bureaucracy and e-governance/transparency in govt. can never go hand by hand. Bureaucrats will never allow e-governance and transparency in govt. be achieved in real sense. They are only enjoying the fruit of IT revolution world wide through traveling more and more countries in the pretext of attending training, conferences and carrying out bilateral projects and so on so forth. They do themselves IT savvy by associating themselves with important IT industries in India and abroad.

4. Because of NICs 20 years of govt. informatics development and its appreciation by all staffs and local officials of state and central govt.,  many unscrupulous IT industries are trying to defame NIC in political and ministerial levels to gain IT business in govt. sector. NIC has been thus squeezed from all sections and its achievement have been sidelined. Many of the MNC-IT industries whose head offices are located in developed countries they provide mostly free IT services to their respective govt. but their profit making commercial centers established in developing countries like India are only meant for generation of profit from developing countries. In view of this, none of IT industries in India have developed any meaningful e-governance software for govt. sector even after being paid heavily by the govt.

V. Bureaucrats have established  National Institute of SMART  Government (NISG)  at Hyderabad to  counter the scientific organization like NIC and NISCI

National Institute of SMART Government(NISG) has been established by bureaucratic lobby to  counter Scientific body like NIC and NICSI  so that  bureaucrats can have honeymoon with Private companies for institutionalizing the corruption and favoritisms for reaping the personal benefit.  NISG is basically a company under government like NICSI.  No projects should be financially approved to NISG without going for open tender. However, it is observed that some of the projects even awarded  by DOPT finance  to NISG breaking all rules of financial rule so that bureaucrats in NISG could take up the project with private vendors.

V. Suggestion

1. IT scientist of NIC should be rightfully promoted under FCS ( Flexible Complimentary Scheme of fifth pay Commission) as has been in the case of Ministry of Science, Department of Spare, CSIR, ICAR and other national Institutes.

IT scientist, like other scientists of above organizations, have been deprived of promotion and are resorted to humiliation and have been paying price of being put under the control of IAS officials who would finish and wipe out the emerging IT Scientist who have been working tirelessly to bring transparency through E-governance for citizens of the country by making IAS official answerable to the autocratic and corruptive actions at all levels.

2. The pending file regarding promotion of IT scientist ( reviewed in 2004) lying with Ministries during last one year should be cleared as early as possible so that next review of eligible IT scientist under FCS should be completedsoon. Unless it is done, whatever has been achieved during last 20 years will be hampered and it would give opportunity to  IAS bureaucrat to finish the NIC to make E-governance a mockery in their hands by playing with Pvt. Vendors.

3. As earlier, NIC should be brought under the Planning Commission which could play an effective/ pivotal role in implementing E-governance in state and central govt. by encouraging IT scientist and making the bureaucracy answerable for their autocratic attitude for playing the bottleneck to the achievement of E-governance. Since last 50 years, even though a cadre service, IAS bureaucracy has always been victimizing and paralising the scientists, subject matter specialist of all scientific/ technical and policy making bodies in central govt. sector of India to suit their hegemony, corruptive practice and bureaucratic autocracy.

4. Planning Commission being a nodal body in policy making and allocating of funds by effective monitoring of different schemes to central and state governments It should be strengthened by bringing NIC in its fold to play vital role in promoting E-governance in state and central government and to play a watch dog against IAS bureaucracy who play hindrance to E-governance and transparency.

5. It may be mentioned that since last five years IAS bureaucrat have been making mockery of E-governance by organizing national conference/IT managers Conference through D/o AR & PG where at the most 4 to 5 state IT secretaries/IT managers hardly present in these conferences. More importantly, there is no meaningful agenda in all these conferences without having any fruitful recommendations. These conferences are only meant for IAS officials for site seeing and enjoying the hospitality of MNC IT vendors in five star hotels.

6. The need of NISG should be questioned. Since NIC and NICSI have already been established to cater to the requirement of govt and pvt interface for achieving the E-governance the duplication of activities of NISG is questionable and is considered as  counter offensive of bureaucrats to scientific agencies like NIC and NICSI. The   establishment of  NISG should be discouraged. E-Governance is basically an attempt to free the citizens from bureaucratic control and hegemony. In case bureaucratic organization like NISG is encouraged  it would  encourage them to have more control  on the administration to have their choice and whims on transperancy

7. India has huge potential in government IT  manpower like nodal IT agency  like NIC and NICSI  whose  presence at center state and district administration   is considered unique in comparison to other developed countries. IT scientist in all level of administration have gained lot of experience in providing IT supports. But irony  is that because of lack of initiative of IAS officials at these center, state and district level  E-governance application developed  by NIC is not being implemented. The lack of initiative  is because  of the  fear of loosing their control on administration  due to transparency offered by E-government.

8. What we need at present in Govt. of India is to outsource the management work

( rather than Software application already developed by NIC) being handled presently by bureaucrats to the MBAs  of  reputed  IIMS for effective implementation of E-Governance software already developed by NIC rather that E-governance software applications to MNCs.  E-government Software application have already been developed  by NIC with its 15 years experience on govt sector what they need is these software should be effectively implemented by  good management support of the  government administration. Implementation  requires 85 % management supports whereas Software support constitutes 15 %. NIC  could not implement vast number of the software  developed by it because of lack of administrative and management support in government.

9. In view of these, in order to effectively implement the e-Governance the Planning Commission should be strengthened by bringing NIC in its fold which can enforce e-Governance in state and central govt. by the way of monitoring the e-governance projects through provision of funds and evaluation / implementation through NIC.

E-governance is national agenda therefore it should be part of the national coordinating agency like Planning Commission rather than it should be restricted to any bureaucratic department.

Department of IT may be responsible for regulating hardware, IT Infrastructure, IT manpower policies and regulation etc. However, e-Governance being a national agenda cutting across the state/ central govt. organizations NIC should be brought back under Planning Commission.

Whatever NIC had achieved in e-Governance while it was in Planning Commission during 1988-2000 its achievement has been reversed by bureaucrat during last two years by hobnobbing with many private vendors only to satisfy their personal interests. We can never achieve e-Governance through the IAS bureaucrats who have been traditionally non-transparent, corruptive and autocratic.

Unless we give NIC its right place we will re-wind the progress of E-governance in each succeeding year.

I request and pray to all concerned not to deprive the NIC-IT scientists their rightful timely promotion, under FCS of fifth pay commission, which not only give them encouragement but also make them feel confident to fight for achieving e-governance in spite of humiliation by IAS bureaucrat at all levels up to district/central/ state government level.

This is one of the social responsibility of all concerned to realize that the scientific organizations which have been contributing significantly for the developmental work for citizen friendly govt. should not be eliminated by bureaucratic and political nexus. It may be brought to the notice of Minister ( Communication and IT), PM, President of India and Dy. Chairman of Planning Commission, Leader of the Opposition etc. for their kind perusal.

With regards

Supporters of the Govt. of India

ABOUT V. M. Kumaraswamy, MBA

This is Mr. V. M. Kumaraswamy, MBA. in business since 1971.

Founder and Moderator of India’s largest e-governance Yahoogroup under the title eGovINDIA.

You can reach this group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/eGovINDIA

This is Mr. V. M. Kumaraswamy, MBA.

About eGovINDIA and it’s activties

http://egovindia.wordpress.com/

http://right2information.wordpress.com/

http://whistleblowers.wordpress.com/

http://coverup2bungled.wordpress.com/

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PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING FOR WHAT IS HAPPENNING.

NISG need to LEARN to RESPOND to EMAILS first to solve problems that it has created in INDIA.

Mr. R. Chandrashekar needs to respond for emails and answerable to all these email letters. He can’t escape. RTI will make him to do it.

We all know that Mr. R. Chandrshekar came from AP to DIT/MIT.  This is when the idea of formimg NISG was started by Mr. R. Chandrashekar. He had a motive behind forming the NISG.

Mr. J. Sathyanarayana is also from AP. He was made the CEO of NISG. These are all understanding between these TWO IAS Officers to DERAIL the eGovernance in INDIA. Also these TWO probably had ideas helping few companies with a motive behind it. These can be seen and read through the DATAQUEST article called E-Governance MUDDLE. This article has exposed the CLOSE RELATINSHIP of NISG with PWC, RAM INFOTECH, CMS and otehr companies.

Mr. J. Sathyanarayana be fore becoming CEO of NISG has cretaed problems of eProcurement SCAM in AP. We all know about this now. He has convinced the WORLDBANK also on C 1 INDIA eProcurement SCAM.

NISG can’t HIDE under Mr. R. Chandrashekar of DIT/MIT to PROTECT from wrong doings. This is happenning.
How long Mr. R. Chandrashekar is going to keep on doing this ?

Formation of NISG is itself QUESTIONABLE now ? How did Mr. R. Chandrashekar made UNDP to INVEST FUNDS into NISG without CABINET APPROVAL ?

UNDP has been led by Governament of INDIA.

NISG need to post all the SOURCES of FUNDS and USES of FUNDS on it’s WEBSITE that it has received from UNDP, MICROSOFT and all other MNC’s and WORLD BANK and other institutions.

NISG’S MOCKERY of eGovernance in INDIA :: Time to wind up NISG save eGovernance in INDIA from NONACCOUNTABILITY

http://egovindia.wordpress.com/2006/07/13/nisgs-mockery-of-egovernance-in-india-time-to-wind-up-nisg-save-egovernance-in-india-from-nonaccountability/

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Copies to:

Minister, Ministry of Communication & IT

Minister of Personnel , Public Grievances and Pension

Dy. Chairman, Planning Commission

Prime Minister

President of India

Copy to : Leader of Opposition, Lok Sabha

‘I am ashamed to use proprietary software’

‘I am ashamed to use proprietary software’ Deepa Kurup

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Krishnakant Mane has tried to bring about awareness about the problems faced by people with disabilities using propriety software

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Krishnakant Mane BANGALORE: Krishnakant Mane says that the freedom and flexibility provided by open source software enables him to work with a variety of interfaces and is integral to his work at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research.

This 27-year-old is visually disabled. He works as a research fellow at TIFR and is adviser to several State Governments. He has been consultant to several companies where he has tried to bring about awareness about the problem faced by people with disabilities using propriety software because it cannot be improvised to suit their needs. “Most people take things for granted and are not aware of our problems,” he says. Like most young men his age, he is an Internet addict, blogs extensively and also helps people on online support groups. Besides working on software solutions for the blind, he is also working on tactile display for the hearing and speech disabled. “I am ashamed to use proprietary software that dictates what I can or should be able to access. A visually disabled person is left at the mercy of the owners and has to wait for them to recode the software to suit his needs,” he says.

“Why should I let the software limit what my magnifier or reader can process?” It is this lack of flexibility that he opposes. Not being employed, a visually impaired person cannot afford to pay huge sums of money, every time something needs to be modified, he argues, speaking to The Hindu on the sidelines of the ongoing Open Source India Week programme.

It is with great indignation that he says that the Government has not done enough to provide computer education to the visually impaired. He completed his education in a regular school and was forced to take up arts due to lack of supporting infrastructure.

“I work for education,” he says with a great degree of optimism. He was on a NASSCOM board which has now committed to including open source software education in the postgraduate curriculum. “It is only a promise and I know that NASSCOM has been a strong supporter of Microsoft; but I still have not lost faith in them. The Knowledge Labs in TIFR is doing hardcore work on Free software and education, but I think the key is to make it a mandatory part of all elementary computer education.

He rejects all proprietor software and says that most people misinterpret it to be a war against Microsoft. He can barely hide his irritation when told that this reporter uses proprietor software. “Nothing in this world comes free; which is why the cost of Free or open source software lies in the willingness to share,” he says. It frustrates him that people advocate open source software for all the wrong reasons; they should understand the value of the freedom and flexibility it offers, he explains.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/02/12/stories/2008021261010400.htm

World Bank and India: Corruption

World Bank and India: Corruption

REVIEW & OUTLOOK

World Bank Disgrace
January 14, 2008; Page A12

Credit Robert Zoellick for knowing how to put the best face on a profound embarrassment. On Friday, the World Bank president announced in a press release that the bank had “joined forces” with the government of India to “fight fraud and corruption” in that country’s health sector. This is happening at the same time that Mr. Zoellick’s colleagues are hounding bank anticorruption chief Suzanne Rich Folsom, the person primarily responsible for bringing the scandals to light.

Corruption is an endemic problem in bank projects, swallowing unknown but significant chunks from its $30 billion-plus annual portfolio. No less a problem has been the bank staff’s ferocious resistance to anything that might stand in the way of its lending ever more money to projects run by the same governments that tolerate this malfeasance.

* * *

Renovated wiring outside of Laboratory CHC-II, Bijipur, April 5, 2007. See more images.

Yet nothing we’ve seen so far can compare to what has now been uncovered about five health projects in India, involving $569 million in loans. The projects were the subject of a “Detailed Implementation Review,” a lengthy forensic examination undertaken by Ms. Folsom’s Department of Institutional Integrity, known within the bank as INT. As of this writing the bank has not publicly released the review, though it’s been shared with the bank’s board. But we’ve seen a copy and are posting its executive summary on wsj.com/opinion and OpinionJournal. com (click here to see it). We are also posting photographs that show the real price that corruption in bank projects exacts on the poor. Here are some of the lowlights:

• In the $54 million “Food and Drug Capacity Building Project,” for which money is still being disbursed, the INT found “questionable procurement practices, some of which indicate fraud and corruption, in contracts representing 87 percent of the number of pieces and 88 percent of the total value of equipment procured.” That is nearly $9 of every $10 in aid funds.

• For the $194 million “Second National AIDS Control Project,” the INT discovered that “some of the test kits supplied by particular companies often performed poorly by producing erroneous or invalid results, potentially resulting in the further spread of disease.”

• In the $114 million “Malaria Control Project,” the review found “numerous indicators of poor product quality in the bed nets supplied by the firms.” And in the $125 million “Tuberculosis Control Project,” the INT discovered “bidders sharing the same address and telephone numbers, unit prices showing a common formula, and indicators of intent to split contract awards among several bidders.”

• After visiting 55 hospitals connected to the bank’s $82 million “Orissa Health Systems Development Project” (Orissa is one of India’s poorest states), INT investigators found “uninitiated and uncompleted work, severely leaking roofs, crumbling ceilings, molding walls, and non-functional water, sewage, and/or electrical systems.” It also found “neonatal equipment that lacked adequate electrical grounding, potentially exposing babies and their medical staff to electrical shocks.”

All this would be bad enough if Indian companies or officials were making off with ill-gotten gains behind the backs of World Bank staff. Instead, the INT found evidence of the bank repeatedly looking the other way. In the case of Orissa’s 55 “hospitals,” the INT found that the “construction management consultants (CMCs) who supervised the work certified that 38 of these hospitals to be complete to project specifications. ” In the AIDS Control Project, “the bank appeared to pay scant attention to the performance and quality of the goods supplied to the blood banks and testing centers, instead focusing on the number of such facilities being erected.”

The report goes on in this vein for hundreds of pages. With the exception of Paul Volcker’s investigation of the U.N. Oil for Food scandal, we can think of no comparable review of an international organization that has brought such damaging facts to light, certainly not one that was internally conducted.

Yet not only does Mr. Zoellick’s press release fail to praise INT’s dogged achievement, it ignores Ms. Folsom altogether. It does, however, give pride of place to bank managing director Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who was recently hired by Mr. Zoellick and is quoted as saying she is encouraged by the Indian government’s “strong resolve” to deal with corruption.

We’ll believe that resolve when we see it. Such promises would be more credible if Mr. Zoellick took meaningful steps to hold accountable those in the bank who acquiesce in this corruption. Former President Paul Wolfowitz showed real spine when he stopped lending to a related Indian health project after a previous INT investigation uncovered fraud. Yet lending to Indian health projects resumed the moment he departed last year.

We wonder, for example, what this now-documented Indian corruption means for the career of Praful Patel, who has been running the bank’s South Asia operations since 2003, and for Managing Director Graeme Wheeler, who until recently oversaw Mr. Patel’s work. Instead of accountability for these supervisors, the bank offers up the Orwellian contrivance by which Ms. Folsom has been whited-out from this story, like the proverbial vanishing commissar.

The foreign aid lobby sometimes says that corruption is the inevitable price of “doing good” in the developing world. Our online readers should look at the photographs of hazardous laboratories and sewage overflowing in hospitals, and wonder how anyone can make that case with a clear conscience.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120026972002987225.html?mod=opinion_ main_review_ and_outlooks

The year when computers finally reach kids:Two international models are ready for roll-out in Indian schools

The year when computers finally reach kids :  

Anand Parthasarathy

Two international models are ready for roll-out in Indian schools

— Photo: Carla Gomez Monroy/OLPC by special arrangement.

HANDS ON EXPERIENCE: Children in the local school at Khairat-Dhangarwada, Raigadh district, Maharashtra, get a first look at the XO laptop. Bangalore: More than 200 students from Kerala’s higher secondary schools — and an equal number of teacher-mentors — converged on Saturday on Technopark, on the outskirts of the State capital. Many of them took part in IT quizzes, digital painting contests — and on Sunday are slated for a privileged “mukha-mukham” or face-to-face encounter with the Park’s technology leaders.

This is the biggest-ever Schools IT Festival held in Kerala — the first visible evidence of what nearly half-a-lakh personal computers placed in 2,800 schools (government and private) have achieved by way of e-nabled education in about two years.

Better endowed Interestingly, government schools seem to be better endowed PC-wise: a personal computer for every 72 children against between 91 and 136 in aided or self-financing private institutions.

Other States are less fortunate — and the cost of a PC often creates a ‘digital divide’ within the Indian school system — separating the better-off private institutions from the public education system.

That may change — albeit in small ways — in 2008. For the first time, we have a choice of computing platforms specially designed, for use by Indian schoolchildren.

HCL has started manufacturing ClassMate PC, a “kid-proof laptop,” with special software for interactive classroom applications — and a suite of Made-for-India software from Educomp. The platform with a 7-inch screen was almost wholly designed by Intel engineers based in Bangalore.

While the native design was for a Windows operating environment, HCL has decided to offer it with a Linux flavour if required. The price is around Rs.18,000-20,000 but the current thinking is to offer it as a bundle with wireless connectivity for schools which will add a small amount to the fee. This model is likely to work only in private schools, for now.

OLPC initiative The much-publicised One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) initiative of Professor Nicholas Negroponte’s group at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has seen its own school computer, now dubbed the XO, being tried out in a few key markets, mostly in Africa and South America.

The fanless, diskless solid-state storage-based laptop is fuelled by an AMD chip and runs Open Source software only. The unit price is closer to $200 than the initially projected $100 — and while the Indian government has not taken an official view on its deployment here, the XO has in fact reached children in a school at Khairat-Dhangarwada in Raigadh district, Maharashtra.

OLPC volunteers were in the school for a fortnight in September-October this year to help the teacher and children use the machines meaningfully. Their experience has been fully documented here: (http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Khairat_Chronicle #Panorama).

Ironically, India’s own affordable PC platform for the masses — the Mobilis — developed for the CSIR by Encore Software (one of the two companies which created variants of the Indian handheld device, the Simputer), is yet to be seen on shop shelves. The government, which unveiled the under-Rs.10,000, Linux-based, laptop-desktop hybrid two years ago with much fanfare has seemingly done little to take the design to production.

Encore is competing with the XO for educational markets in Brazil and elsewhere.

Tools are ready With two, and hopefully three, offerings ready for classroom deployment, India’s more pro-active State governments have the tools at last, to fuel their own classroom revolution in 2008. Non-governmental funding by voluntary agencies is known to be more forthcoming these days — so, money may not be a hurdle. All it needs is the conviction that the time has come to make IT happen for our children.

http://www.hindu.com/2007/12/30/stories/2007123054471100.htm

ARTICLES WRITTEN ABOUT C. UMASHANKAR’s Achievements in eGovernance in Tamilnadu.

ARTICLES WRITTEN ABOUT C. UMASHANKAR’s

Achievements in  eGovernance in Tamilnadu.

An IAS officer who established first e-district in the country in 1999,
Please look into this and question yourself !!

Tiruvarur e-Governance Project – YEAR 1999 – 30 pages in detail.
Transformation of the India’s first e-district by tech. savvy I.A.S. officer Mr. Umashankar.

http://egovindia.wordpress.com/2006/07/19/process-automation-based-e-governance-implementation-in-core-government-functioning-in-tiruvarur-district-of-tamilnadu-india-2/

India E-district :: Process Automation based e-governance implementation

http://egovernance.wordpress.com/2007/01/06/india-e-district-process-automation-based-e-governance-implementation/_________

An IAS officer who established first e-district in the country, possibly the first in Asia. His e-governance made procedures simpler for the public and introduced transparency in the administration.

No entry for professionals

ANIL DHARKER Sunday, Jun 15, 2003

http://www.thehindu.com/thehindu/mag/2003/06/15/stories/2003061500170200.htm

Is there any merit in the argument that doctors and engineers need not apply for the IAS?

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Umashankar still cooling his heels

http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/2001/07/26/stories/04262232.htm

By Radha Venkatesan July 26th, 2001.

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Land record systems revisited - October 2003,

http://www.gisdevelopment.net/magazine/gisdev/2003/october/landsr.shtml

C Umashankar
IAS, Commissioner, Disciplinary
Proceedings Salem, Tamil Nadu, India
umashankarc@yahoo.com

An integrated computerised land administration system is still at dream level all over India. The need of the hour in India is to formulate a scheme to integrate the text based land record data with the graphic (map) data. There are serious issues arising out of the above proposition due to the enormity of the task involved.

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