Keeping its promise of expanding e-governance initiatives across the country, the Tamil Nadu government is mulling over launching an SMS-based service which will facilitate tracking and delivery of government services for the citizens and the government officials.

The announcement was made in the Tamil Nadu Assembly by state information and technology minister Mukkur N Subramanian in response to a query on his department’s demand for grants in the coming fiscal. The state government has planned to invest Rs 20 lakh for the project.
In the initial phase, the SMS-based system will cover around 10 services of the revenue department and the social welfare department which would include the issue of certificates and the distribution of marriage assistance schemes.

According to the policy note of the department, setting up of the mobile service delivery platform would be a crucial step towards leveraging the high tele-density in the state to ensure quicker delivery of e-services. Following the standardisation of the delivery platform, the project will be expanded to other departments.
In addition, Subramanian announced that over 2,200 common service centres will be set up across the state by the IT department to expand the reach of various government services even in remote locations.