Kochi Corporation's e-governance services come to a halt

KOCHI: Justin, a nurse at a leading private hospital in the city, was devastated when his father suddenly succumbed to cardiac arrest. But, his woes only got bigger when he tried to apply for a death certificate online.

After spending some time on the system, he found the server completely down, forcing him to manually complete the work, spending hours in the Corporation office. Justin's is not an isolated case. Forget its completion, the Kochi Corporation's ambitious e-governance project has failed to provide even the basic service to the residents. 

Out of the promised 22 modules of services, five were launched in February 2018 namely trade license, Town Hall booking, issuance of birth, death and marriage certificates and e-trade services. But, at the moment nothing works. 

The delay in the much-hyped project is leaving the residents furious. "If they really cared about the city and its people, they should focus on completing model projects like e-governance on time," says Varkey, a resident of Giri Nagar.   

A solution?
Despite facing severe criticism from the public and opposition alike, the Corporation blames Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) for the failure of the project. The project expected to be completed within 54 weeks had Wipro as a technical consultant. Due to the indefinite delay, the tech giant moved out of the project. 
"Wipro has committed a grave error by moving out of the project halfway. Since then, we have been lacking the technical expertise to assess the work completed by TCS and hence couldn't take a decision on transferring the amount. TCS is adamant on the payment as per the DPR to continue the work. As per our request, the State Government has sent experts from Information Kerala Mission (IKM). A meeting between TCS, Wipro and IKM officials will be held on Wednesday in the presence of the Mayor to find a solution," said  TJ Vinod, Deputy Mayor, Kochi Corporation.

Dispelling the arguments put forth by the ruling front, the opposition is alleging apathy of officials for the mess. "From the very beginning of the project, there were issues. As per the DPR, TCS has to be paid on the completion of each module. Here, half the project cost has already been transferred without even completing  25 per cent of the project," said V P Chandran, a councillor from Chambakkara.
Lack of interest

Amidst these claims, many allege lack of interest on the part of Corporation officials to accept the project. 
"The project was actually launched early 2000. It was helmed by Information Kerala Mission but failed to reach anywhere till 2011. It was later re-launched under JNNURM and Wipro was entrusted to make the DPR. With a multinational firm like TCS on board, the project is supposed to complete within the stipulated time. But, our officials with an outdated mindset are resisting the modernity in administration. They will keep on making issues," said K J Sohan, former Mayor, Kochi Corporation. 

THE PROJECT AT A GLANCE
Launched in:    2011
Implementing agency    TCS
Project consultant    Wipro
Total estimate     `8.10 cr
Total number of
modules    22 
Completed modules
so far    4
Amount handed over
till date    Rs 4.20 cr