Jammu and Kashmir gets National Award for e-Governance

JAMMU: Jammu and Kashmir has bagged the National Award for e-Governance for the best district-level initiative in the country.

The Department of Administrative Reforms, Ministry of Personnel and the PMO have selected Jammu and Kashmir for National Award e-Governance 2014-15 for the best district- level initiative in the country, an official spokesman said today.

The award will be shared by Deputy Commissioner Kathua, Shahid Iqbal Choudhary, and Assistant Commissioner Development Reasi, Joginder Singh Rai, for the project e-Panchayat, launched in 2013-14, for strengthening 147 panchayats in the state, he said.

Under the project, a decentralized regime of panchayats has been established in the state with service delivery shifted from block level to panchayat level.

"The awards will be presented during the 18th National Conference on e-Governance scheduled to be held at Gandhinagar on January 30-31, 2015," he said.

Project e-Panchayat was shortlisted among 53 nominees for spot-study which was done by PriceWater Coopers Ltd and officers of Department of Administrative Reforms, PMO, followed by presentations by the 9 finalists at New Delhi on December 22, 2014, he said.

The awards are cleared by jury headed by Secretary Administrative Reforms and conferred after the approval of Prime Minister who heads the Ministry of Personnel, Department of Administrative Reforms, he said.

"Jammu and Kashmir has bagged the award first time in 18 years since the institution of awards in 1997," he said.