Assam government on Wednesday set up a separate directorate of information technology. Ahead of Global Investors’ Summit in February this step would surely bolster the new paradigm of development in the state.
Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal while inaugurating the directorate said the state government is using e-governance to extend good governance to the people of Assam.
An exclusive directorate of information technology would help the government to resolve the digital divide between urban and rural areas.
Sonowal said though the IT works so far have been looked after by AMTRON, creation of a separate directorate would lend administrative efficiency.
He also said after the explosion of Airways, Roadways and Waterways, information highway is another area that the state is heavily relying on.
In his speech Sonowal said the state government in order to spread the fruits of governance even in the remotest part of the state has been actively working to build a dedicated network of optical grid in the state. In such backdrop, inauguration of the IT directorate would not only break the jinx of digital divide, it would help in eliminating corruption at all levels.
He also said the proliferation of IT would also act as a catalyst to overcome ignorance and superstitions.
The chief minister said the technology driven-force in the directorate must be in a position to cater to the information needs of the public.
He, however, said that the directorate through the extensive use of IT must forge harmony among different sections of the people of the state belonging to Barak, Brahmaputra, plains and hills.
Sonowal also conceded that inaugurating a directorate for IT just before the first ever Global Investors’ Summit would augur well in bolstering a new paradigm of development in the state.
“It should also act as a repository of information so that the prospective investors get all sorts of information just by clicking a mouse,” Sonowal added.
Information and Technology Minister Keshab Mahanta while speaking on the occasion gave a brief overview of IT revolution that his ministry has unleashed under the leadership of the Chief Minister. He also said the government in the coming days would announce many more IT friendly schemes for creating an enabling IT environment in the state.