E-GOVERNANCE PREPAREDNESS – Punjab’s PAWAN

[DOC] E-GOVERNANCE PREPAREDNESS

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Punjab Wide Area Network (PAWAN) has been identified as core infrastructure project for supporting the state e-governance initiatives. Government of India …
punjabgovt.nic.in/WHATSNEW/India-Tech%20Report%20-%20May%202005(New).doc –

Punjab land records to be computerised in 6 months

Punjab land records to be computerised in 6 months
Naveen S. Garewal
Tribune News Service

 http://www.tribuneindia.com/2006/20060623/punjab1.htm#5

Chandigarh, June 22
The Punjab Government announced the expeditious implementation of the Punjab State Area Wide Network (PAWAN), flowing out of the National e-governance Plan (NeGP) that will spend Rs 23,000 crore till next year to take the benefits of the Information Technology (IT) revolution to the common man nationwide. Once in place, PAWAN in Punjab will lead to computerisation of all land revenue records, transportation details and make most government records available at the click of a mouse over the next six to nine months.

Disclosing this here today, the Punjab’s Director I.T, Mr N.S. Kalsi, said the Punjab Government had invited global tenders for establishing of and managing PAWAN that would act as the government’s backbone network for data, voice and video communication up to the block and sub-division level. Computerisation work in general had already started in 17 districts of the state and 54 out of the 74 sub-divisions in Punjab.

The key objective of PAWAN is to make government services accessible to all citizens through a centralised electronic delivery system integrated with every department in the state.

Since the Punjab Government finds itself unequipped to handle the gigantic project on its own, it has invited tenders from reputed IT companies for designing, implementing, operating and maintaining PAWAN on ‘Build Operate and Transfer’ (BOT) basis over the period of next five years.

The company selected after August 4, the last date for submitting the tenders will have to prepare 141 sites across Punjab for the State Network Centres, 19 District Network Centres, 74 Sub-divisions Networks and 142 Block Network Centres. Mr Kalsi said that these Centres would work like “Sampark” centres being run by the Chandigarh Administration and would take information to the grassroots level.

The entire project, he said, was time-bound and will be completed in a phased, but pre- determined time frame. He said that the Punjab Government intended to use Information and Communication Technology (ICT) as a vehicle for effective governance and to empower its citizens.

He further disclosed that the Punjab Government had proposed to facilitate the establishment of a network of around 2500 internet enabled Information and Communication Technology (ICT) access points, termed as Common Service Centres (CSCs) in the State. The CSCs would provide high quality and cost effective video, voice and data content, in the areas of e-Government, education, health, entertainment and other possible government and private services.

Talking about the state of IT in Punjab he said there had been a tremendous increase in software exports from Punjab that had touched Rs 425 crore during the current financial year as compared to Rs 7.77 crore in 1998-99.

The registration of export units at the Software Technology Park at Mohali had increased from 100 units in 2000 to 225 units during 2005-2006.

Mr Anurag Rastogi, Managing Director, Hartron, also affirmed a similar plan for Haryana. “Haryana too is implementing the State Area Wide Network in all the 20 districts of Haryana”, he said.