HT : mcgm.gov.in now open for business : Sept 14, 2007

mcgm.gov.in now open for business

Naresh Kamath
Mumbai

NO MORE long queues and endless rounds to civic ward offices. Soon, citizens
will be able to procure birth certificates or pay property taxes, with the
click of a mouse - on mcgm.gov.in.

On Thursday, Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh flagged off the e-governance
initiative of the civic body and also inaugurated the 10,000-sq ft data
centre at Worli. The newly revamped interactive civic website was also
started on the occasion.

Deshmukh said the entire programme was designed to serve the common man.
"Citizens no longer have to waste their time running from one counter to
other," said Deshmukh.

Deshmukh said he was confident that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's
(BMC) initiative would be replicated across the nation.

The initiative, a brainchild of Additional Municipal Commissioner Sri Kant
Singh, will have features like citizen portals (single window system for
lodging, status monitoring and issuance of birth and death certificates),
ward management (file tracking system), project systems (e-tendering of
various works), health care management (online patient registrations and
monitoring of diseases).

The system is connected to all the 24 ward offices, 34 fire stations, six
octroi nakas, 50 pumping stations, three dumping grounds and 25 civic
hospitals.

Shiv Sena Executive President Uddhav Thackeray and Bharatiya Janata Party
city president Prakash Mehta, the guests of honour, also lauded the
initiative.

SAP India Private Limited, the firm behind the software, said the task was
challenging. "We had to deal with voluminous amount of data as the BMC
offers numerous civic services," said Sanjay Seth, director, Public
Services, SAP.

naresh.kamath@hindustantimes.com 'I WON'T INTERFERE IN CRAWFORD PLAN' Chief

Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh said he would not interfere with the civic body's
decision to redevelop the historic Crawford Market. "The BMC is an
independent body and it would be wrong if we interfered," said Deshmukh. "I
have not received a single complaint and hence there is no question of any
inquiry." Member of Parliament Milind Deora said he would write a protest
letter to Deshmukh against the proposal. Right to Information (RTI) activist
Shailesh Gandhi, a known critic of the proposal, has, meanwhile, started a
campaign against the proposal.

Publication : HT; Section : Metro; Pg : 6; Date : 14/9/07
URL :
http://epaper.hindustantimes.com/artMailDisp.aspx?article=14_09_2007_006_004&typ=0&pub=264