eGovWatch: Express Digital Governance Series: Digitisation of government offices in UP
Organised in Lucknow, on 6th May 2015, the Express Digital Governance Series took account of what we’ve learned over the last few years about the importance of digitisation in government offices. The event also provided an overview of how optimum digitisation can be accomplished through the range of innovative products developed by Canon
In order to make their operations clearer, simpler and faster, the government departments in India are now eagerly implementing various software and hardware solutions for enabling Digital Office. It is now widely accepted that one of the key aspects of a successful governance model is the incorporation of systems that lead to easy, transparent and seamless document management.
With the objective of facilitating exchange of knowledge on the solutions that lead to seminal improvements in the operations of government departments, the Express Computer magazine organised the “Express Digital Governance Series” in Lucknow. Powered by Canon, the event was attended by several key officials from the Government of Uttar Pradesh. The roundtable discussion was moderated by Subhmoy Bhattacharjee, Deputy Editor, Indian Express.
Ranjan Dwivedi, Director General of Police and Commandant General Home Guards, who was part of the eminent roundtable, said, “It is now well recognised that digitisation is of critical importance. The government of Uttar Pradesh is putting lot of effort to ensure that there is speedy digitisation in all its departments, but it is primarily up to the companies such as Canon to innovate and come up with the appropriate solutions.”
“In my opinion, Canon should focus on introducing machines that function in Indian Languages. This will ensure that many people, who are more comfortable in using Indian languages, are able to use these machines,” Dwivedi added.
He also informed the guests at the roundtable that the government of Uttar Pradesh understands that it is critical to reduce the use of paper in government offices. Canon should provide solutions that consume less paper.
K. Bhaskhar, VP – Office Imaging Solutions Division, Canon, said, “Uttar Pradesh is high-growth market. Today Lucknow is a hub for many large corporations. Canon is dedicated to serve the needs of the state.”
“In Uttar Pradesh, Canon is working closely with ten partners to offer its customers a vast range of innovative, cost-effective products, online casino which follow international environmental guidelines and help organisations comply with the environmental norms,” Bhaskhar added.
Talking specifically about the solutions that Canon is designing, Bhaskhar said, “With our world-class imaging technology, we aim to contribute in their growth journey by taking care of their imaging requirements. Canon’s end-to-end imaging solutions can help companies save costs, while enjoying better security and eco-friendly printing features. All this will lead to increase in employee productivity.”
Senior officials from the Uttar Pradesh unit of National Informatics Centre were also present at the event. NIC officials were of the view that digitisation is a must for the smooth functioning of the government offices, but they also highlighted the concerns related to security and whereabouts of the data.
“We in the government want to digitise after ensuring that all the security related safeguards are in place. We don’t want to store our data outside the country. Indian data must remain inside India,” an NIC official said.
“We will be very happy if the data generated by Uttar Pradesh, resides within Uttar Pradesh,” an NIC official added.
The presentation by K. Bhaskhar was the highlight of the event. Bhaskhar gave a broad overview of the solutions that Canon is offering for digitisation and document management in the government sector. He consistently expressed the view that proper document management is critical for bringing efficiency, saving energy and ultimately improving the revenues of the organisation.
