Digital India initiatives undertaken for Cantonment Boards

New Delhi [India], December 17 (ANI): The Defence Estates Day, which is celebrated every year on December 16, commemorates the Constitution of the Cantonment Departments.

The Defence Estates Day is preceded by Defence Estates Day Lecture, which is delivered by an eminent personality on a topic of interest to civil servants, officers of armed forces, probationary officers and intelligentsia. This year, the lecture was delivered by Union Minister Arun Jaitley, on November 30. The topic of lecture was "India's Roadmap for World Class Infrastructure".

This year various measures under the Digital India initiatives were undertaken by all Cantonment Boards.

'Samadhan' - an online public grievances redressal system has been implemented by all Cantonment Boards to make their administration more responsive to the public. 'Suvidha'- a software to address the grievances of the staff has also been installed by the Boards.

In e-governance initiatives, the Cantonment Boards have made significant strides in automating their office processes. Now, e-tendering and e-procurement are implemented by all the Cantonment Boards. Scanning and digitisation of important records, particularly land records, and inventorisation of records has been completed.

The Cantonment Boards have their own websites and they are already providing e-services to the residents in taxation, birth/death registration, hospital management etc.

They have also strengthened e-services delivery by including online property tax payments, water charges payments etc.

The Defence Estates Department is an Inter Service Organisation of the Ministry of Defence which provides advisory inputs on all Cantonments and land matters to the Ministry of Defence and Service Headquarters i.e. the Army, the Navy, the Air Force and other organisations under the Ministry of Defence.

The Cantonment Boards are responsible for providing civic administration and implementing the Central Government's schemes of social welfare, public health, hygiene, safety, water supply, sanitation, urban renewal and education in the Cantonment areas.

A Cantonment Board is constituted by elected and official members in the Board. A station commander is the president of the Cantonment Board and the Chief Executive Officer performs the duties of Member - Secretary of the Board.

The Cantonment Boards have cultivated the culture of excellence by actively participating in (SBA) Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan. A clean India drive and SWM (Solid Waste Management) projects have been undertaken to make all Cantonments area clean and green.

The Cantonment Boards have taken the responsibility to keep residents societies, schools, parks and commercial areas neat and clean in the Cantonment Area.

There is involvement of the public, social groups and school children in the initiative. Even the official employees from all the ranks and posts have pledged their active support for creating a clean and green cantonment. As a result, the Cantonment areas have been declared as ODF (Open Defecation Free) areas. (ANI)