Maharashtra wants 14,000 gram panchayats to go cashless by May
The Maharashtra government has decided to prepare nearly 14,000 gram panchayats for cashless transactions, complete with POS machines and BHIM-Aadhaar Apps, by May 2017.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has assured the Centre that the state would strive to go digital across its 29,000 gram panchayats, which comprise 40,913 villages, in two phases along with the BHIM-Aadhaar platform by 2018.
Of the total 29,000 gram panchayats across Maharashtra, directives to equip 14,000 gram panchayats for digital and cashless transformation have been conveyed to the state’s Information and Technology Department, which is working along with Maharashtra government’s urban development and finance ministries.
During a meeting on Monday, officers of the concerned departments were asked to take Digital India programme and BHIM Aadhaar App to villages on high priority.
CM Fadnavis also recently discussed the matter with Union Minister for Information Technology Ravi Shankar Prasad and told him about his government’s 2018 target.
Highly placed sources told The Indian Express that, “Along with the digital transformation across 29,000 gram panchayats in partnership of Microsoft, it (government) intends to promote the BHIM-Aadhaar App through gram panchayats…”
In the first pilot project, 776 gram panchayats have been covered to make Nagpur the first digital smart district of Maharashtra and country in 2016.
In a pilot project launched two years ago in partnership with Mircrosoft, the state had succeeded in bringing digital connectivity to 350 villages using the White Space technology support provided by the US company.
“The internet penetration in state is very satisfactory with 4.72 crore subscribers which is highest in India,” officials said.
The total population of state is 11.40 crore. Statistics show that Maharashtra would account for almost 20 per cent of digital programmes with 29,000 gram panchayats of the total 1,50,000 across India by year 2018.
Through BharatNet, laying of optic fibre for hi-speed internet connectivity is expected to be done in the next one year. At present 1,55,000 km optical fibre has been laid and it reaches 75,700 gram panchayats across country.
The state intends to use digital transformation to enhance the e-health and e-education services in rural Maharashtra. The government also plans to extend digital services in agriculture sector to help farmers.
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