Kerala government sets e-office deadline

Thiruvananthapuram: With some bureaucrats in the Secretariat still preferring the manual mode of file transfer, despite repeated directives, the government has set a deadline to go paperless.

All the 40-odd departments should migrate to the e-Office this month.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, at a meeting with secretaries last month, had taken serious note of the lapses, including on the part of secretaries, and warned them of action.

Subsequently, the government decided that all offices will entirely shift to the electronic platform by April. Chief secretary S. M. Vijayanand has issued a set of directives which warns of action against those insisting on the physical form.

The officials are directed to report to the chief secretary or the IT secretary if anyone sought hard copies.

Interdepartmental file movements seeking opinions should be only through e-office from this month. The digitising should complete before March 31, and after that, IT department would not give support for migration, the directive says.
Government sources said departments like revenue and home had pointed out the need to handle some files in physical format owing to its secret nature.

Even in such cases, their identification details have to be recorded on e-office.
After repeated directives, almost all departments have appointed nodal officers and assistant nodal officers for coordinating e-office activities and training of officials are progressing.