The Hindu 07.10.2013
Soon, e-payment for government services
Bills can be paid through at least 70 banks
Presumably by October end, netizens in Kerala can
remit their electricity and water bills and even traffic fines and
university fee from the relative comfort of their homes or offices,
thanks to a State government-sponsored electronic payment gateway that
authorises credit/debit card payments for a whole range of government
services.
Principal Secretary, Information Technology and Industries, K.S. Sreenivas told
The Hindu
that the e-payment gateway is currently integrated with the State
government’s e-district governance programme and can be accessed only
through Akshaya centres.
However, this is set to
change with the State readying to launch an online web portal this month
to enable citizens to access its e-commerce application service through
computers, tablets, and smart phones with Internet connectivity.
Till
recently, only citizens with credit/debit cards issued by two public
sector banks could avail themselves of the e-payment facility.
The
government has accorded a wider choice to citizens by authorising
e-payments, including online banking transactions, through at least 70
private and public sector banks for its various services.
The
service will be extended to all government departments, including the
Motor Vehicle, Revenue, and Commercial Taxes departments.
Director,
Kerala State Information Technology Mission, P. Balakiran, said the
State, in association with the National Data Base Management Ltd, a
Union government entity, has created the e-payment service platform,
which would empower citizens to make all types of payments to the
government, including various licence fee, taxes, and utility bill
payments, without having to queue up in front of crowded counters at
government offices.
Internet usage and computer
literacy in Kerala were growing at an exponential rate and in a matter
of a few years, they would become universal in the State.
He
said that in one stroke, the State has also bypassed the need for its
citizens to rely on “costly” private electronic payment gateways in
availing themselves of public services that are transactional in nature
by ensuring that its e-payment service charges are the lowest in the
global e-commerce market.
Simultaneously, in a bid to
enhance transparency and efficiency in all forms of government
procurement, the State government has ordered all its departments to go
in for e-tendering.
The Industries Department, for
one, has ordered that for any procurement above Rs.1 lakh, the tender
should be published online and only online bids in the prescribed
digital format be entertained.
Mr. Sreenivas said the
compliance level to the order has been very high, thereby negating, to a
great extent, allegations of nepotism and corruption.
