Date:09/05/2006 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2006/05/09/stories/2006050904300100.htm

Back Knowledge panel members divided on reservations: Pitroda

Our Bureau

Calls for enforcing standard e-governance procedures for States

MR SAM PITRODA (right), Chairman, National Knowledge Commission, with Mr Nandan Nilekani, Member, National Knowledge Commission, and CEO, Infosys, at a press conference in Bangalore on Monday. - G R N Somashekar

Bangalore , May 8

The eight-member National Knowledge Commission (NKC) is divided on the reservation issue being debated across the country.

"Six out of the eight members feel that status quo should be maintained until such time when we have explored new and more effective avenues of affirmative action, while two members disagree with the above view," said Mr Sam Pitroda, Chairman of the NKC.

Dr Jayati Ghosh and Dr P.M. Bhargava support the extension of reservation, subject to certain conditions.

A statement on reservations in Central educational institutions said that this was a historic opportunity to craft more effective policies to make educational institutions more socially inclusive.

Calling it a great tool to leave behind the British Raj, Mr Pitroda said that e-governance is "more about an opportunity for administrative reforms than merely electronics, IT, and infrastructure."

Outlining the recommendations of the NKC on e-governance at the end of the three-day sitting of the Commission, Mr Pitroda said that there was a need to create a national infrastructure and the Commission would use open source technology wherever possible.

The NKC has also made a significant supportive gesture to the open source movement.

The reports states: "We must actively encourage open source software implementations and open standards. This will allow us to have cost-effective solutions and help develop open software products and standards."

The NKC has recommended that the Government process needs to be re-engineered before any computerisation, thus reducing the process time for obtaining services.

"Simply digitising the existing Government processes merely adds an additional layer of expense, complexity, delay, and confusion."

Processes that are likely to be simplified and made Web-based in the near future are services such as obtaining birth certificates, death certificates, proof of residence, ration/ID cards, etc.

"Private players may be involved in delivering such services," he said.

The cost of the projects is estimated to be Rs 5,000-7,000 crore, according to him.

Other recommendations of the Commission include enforcing standard e-governance procedures for all States and adopting best practices from on-going e-governance projects in certain States.

The NKC has also recommended the appointment of a specialist Chief Information Technology Officer (CITO) and draw from the country's most competent tech talent to fill this post.

To fine-tune the direction further, the Commission has recommended the setting of an inter-Ministerial group to be headed by the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh.