'Samagra' app to make citizen services easily accessible

KANNUR: Keeping in mind the increasing importance of the cellphone in today's world, Information Kerala Mission (IKM), which provides the IT backbone for panchayat raj institutions, is planning to launch a mobile application to make citizen services available via mobile phones. IKM is an autonomous institution under the local self-government department.
The app, 'Samagra', is in its final stage of development and some of its services would be made available on a pilot basis in Thiruvananthapuram in April.It will be expanded to other districts by June, said C P Suresh Kumar, executive director, IKM.
"We thought of the mobile app because cellphone has become a gadget that connects us with all services," he said. "So such an app could make the services more accessible."
Apart from applying for various certificates including birth, death and marriage certificates, it will also help to make e-payment of property tax in select municipalities and corporations, he said. The certificates would be made available online with digital signature. In due course, all web applications of IKM would be integrated with the mobile app, so that the services offered by the local governments.
Samagra will also integrate the school management system of IKM for local bodies. Once this is done, the school attendance process can be further streamlined and SMS alerts sent to parents of a student who is absent, he said.
"Our aim is to make local governments paperless," Suresh said.
Trikaripur panchayat develops mobile app
Meanwhile, Trikaripur panchayat in Kasaragod district, which has the distinction of being the first Wi-Fi-enabled village panchayat in the country, said it has already developed such an app but they are unable to launch it without the consent of IKM.
"We conceived the idea of a mobile app while working on the free Wi-Fi service. It was a major step towards making the panchayat office paperless by April," said panchayat president A G C Basheer. "But IKM told us that they were working on a similar app for all panchayats and hence could not give consent," he said, adding that if the IKM project is delayed, the panchayat would once again seek the consent to launch its own mobile app.