The Kerala chief minister's website (www.keralacm.gov.in) grabbed the Icon of Excellence Web Ratna gold medal award instituted by the central government to promote innovative e-governance initiatives.

"This is for the first time that Web Ratna award is coming to Kerala," a state government release said after P T Chacko, press secretary to chief minister Oommen Chandy, received the award from communication and IT minister Kapil Sibal on Monday.

The award aims at honouring initiatives taken by the Chief Minister who has leveraged the use of ICT to seek the active participation of the public in the process of governance, the release said.

Award Winners

Three Awards - Platinum Icon, Gold Icon and Silver Icon have conferred in each of the following six categories:

Citizen Centric Service

In this category, the awards acknowledge those ICT-based services by a Government Department (Central/State) which has displayed exemplary citizen focus, reach, scope and innovation in approach. These services have effectively contributed to enhance efficiency, productivity, transparency and accountability in the governance by using the web as a primary mode of delivery in addition to other conventional/nonconventional modes.

WINNERS

    Platinum Icon : VAHAN - Vehicle Registration & Permit System
    Gold Icon : Krishi Maharatavahini
    Silver Icon : Uttarakhand Jal Sansthan

Public Participation Initiative

The awards in this category honour those initiatives which have leveraged upon the use of ICT to solicit active participation of the citizens in governance. The winning entries display relevance of context, mode of participation, involvement of stakeholders and an innovative use of ICT, both for response acquisition as well as for analysis of inputs received. The impact of the initiative (qualitative as well as quantitative) serves as a significant criterion for judging this award.

WINNERS

    Platinum Icon : Digital Diplomacy - Ministry of External Affairs
    Gold Icon : Kerala Chief Minister's Office
    Silver Icon : Bihar Public Grievance Redressal System

Outstanding Content

The awards in this category felicitate outstanding content published on the web by a Government entity. Content packaged from the perspective of the citizens is considered under this category. Also, adherence to the basic standards of usability such as ease of navigation, design, accessibility, visual appeal, clarity (textual and design), load time and the overall quality of creative expression is taken into consideration.

WINNERS

    Platinum Icon : National Institute of Open Schooling
    Gold Icon : AIR Portal for News Dissemination
    Silver Icon : Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)

Innovative Use of Technology

The awards in this category acknowledge ICT Applications which display innovative use of technology in the functioning of Government and services provided to the citizens. The acceptance and maturity level of implementation, scalability, sustainability and the impact of the use of technology define excellence under this category.

WINNERS

    Platinum Icon : RITE e-Governance
    Gold Icon : Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity (DAVP)
    Silver Icon : Tripura Vision Centre (Tele-Ophthalmology)

Comprehensive Web Presence - Ministry/Department

The awards in this category felicitate a Ministry of the Government of India which has a comprehensive web presence in terms of quantity, quality, spectrum of coverage, innovation, citizen centricity and responsiveness in their web-based information and service delivery initiatives. Aspects of usability and accessibility are also taken into consideration.

WINNERS

    Platinum Icon : Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance
    Gold Icon : Ministry of Panchayati Raj
    Silver Icon : Ministry of Corporate Affairs

Comprehensive Web Presence – State

The awards in this category acknowledge the State/UT of India which has displayed exemplary initiative in establishing comprehensive web presence. The selection criteria include the overall quality and quantity of web-based initiatives, the spectrum of sectors/departments having a good web presence and the level of responsiveness towards web-based queries by citizens. Aspects of usability and accessibility also served as major decisive elements.

WINNERS

    Platinum Icon : Government of Tamil Nadu
    Gold Icon : Government of Maharashtra