Strengthening Mobile Network In Rural Areas Tops Govt’s Priority, Says Odisha IT Minister

Bhubaneswar: Minister for Electronics and Information Technology on Thursday said the Odisha government would work towards strengthening mobile network and internet facilities in rural areas of the state.

Chairing a review meeting of the activities of the department, the minister said priority will be given to attract new IT companies to the state and create a conducive ecosystem for investors in the electronics and IT sector. Further, pro-active steps would be taken towards popularising Odia Virtual Academy by organising workshops, conferences, meetings and virtual literary discussions, he added.

The minister said the government would work in a time bound manner towards fulfilling the promises made in the manifesto. “This government is a government of the common man. All necessary steps will be taken by the government to fulfil the aspirations of common man by use of technology in governance. The Electronics and IT department will work as per the mandate of the Digital India Initiative of the Union Government, taking steps to implement all welfare schemes at the grassroots level,” he said.

Mahaling was apprised of the role played by various organisations functioning under the department including Odisha Computer Application Centre (OCAC), Odia Virtual Academy, IIIT Bhubaneswar and OKCL. Leading e-Governance projects such as Odisha State Data Centre, Odisha State Wide Area Network (OSWAN), Cyber Security Operation Centre (CSOC), Odisha Secretariat IT Centre, Bharat Net, Odisha State Workflow Automation System (OSWAS), Odisha One Portal, E-Despatch, CM Dashboard, SAMS, E-District etc. and their evolution over the years.

The meeting was attended by Principal Secretary Vishal Kumar Dev, CEO OCAC-cum-additional secretary E&IT department Manoj Pattnaik and other senior officials.