Departmental Websites: Glorious inertia
Moa Jamir
Dimapur | June 13
When the official website of the Chief Minister of Nagaland was launched in September 2016, it was reported that Cabinet had also asked every department to earmark 3 per cent of their budget allocation for IT-related activities.
The government departments have been asked to mandatorily create a separate departmental website hosted by the Nagaland State Data Centre, it noted.
While some departmental websites were up to date on its activities, most of them seem to be stuck in time – in a glorious inertia, oblivious to changes around them or even in their respective departments.
A visit to many websites listed in the state’s portal https://www.nagaland.gov.in/ thus is an exercise in futility.
In many govt dept websites, TR Zeliang still Nagaland CM
Want to know the latest status of forest in Nagaland? The Department of Forests, Ecology, Environment and Wildlife’s website is not the right place. Its latest status on flora and fauna and forest was January 1, 2001.
The Department of Agriculture Nagaland is still ‘uncultivated’. Though planted in 2003, the Department of Horticulture Nagaland website is yet to bloom.
The Sericulture and Soil and Water Conservation departments’ websites were not working.
Forget consumer protection, the Legal Metrology & Consumer Protection Department itself seems to be unaware about any changes. Its ‘latest statement’ on Working of Consumer Fora/Consumer Protection was last quarter for Year Ending June 31, 2006.
The Labour & Employment Department website is a blank page with just the department name and nothing to offer. The Department of Social Welfare is copyrighted to 2017, but last updated on March 15, 2016.
According to the Directorate of Evaluation website, TR Zeliang is still the Chief Minister and Banuo Z Jamir, the Chief Secretary. Its last Annual Administrative Reports is 2013-14.
Ditto for the Department of New and Renewable Energy and its ‘latest information’ is a tender notice for Solar Street Light in 2012.
The Department of Food and Civil Supplies, the nodal agency for catering of Food grains and other essential commodities is too on a slumber with no perceptible activity since the launching of Nagaland Food Security Act in June, 27 2016.
The latest update on Administrative Training Institute’s website is the inaugural 'Common Induction Programme' of 2014 batch IAS, IPS, NCS, NPS & Allied Services probationers.
The Department of Irrigation & Flood Control report on ‘latest event’ was Friday, January 18 2011.The resource on departmental activities was M.I Projects taken up under AIBP 2014-15.
Inaugural of a Pay & Use Toilet outside Secretariat Office, Kohima on February and awareness programmme in March 2015 are the latest events in Public Health Engineering Department’s website. Though Nagaland Water Policy-2016 is available in the website, it latest status of Rural Water Supply in Nagaland is April 1, 2014.
The Department of Soil and Water Conservation website was not working. The latest activities listed in Department of Science & Technology – Nagaland was on 2014.
The Directorate of Urban Development Department’s website is ‘underdeveloped’ and the latest administrative report available is 2007-08.
While dates in Department of Rural Development’s website get updated by default, its activities suggest that it has not been updated since 2015. A Facebook page given in the website also has zero post. The State Institute of Rural Development’s only resource available on its website is Administrative Reports 2015-2016.
The State Council of Educational Research and Training, Nagaland (SCERT), the academic wing of the Department of School Education ‘latest news’ was posted on 9 September, 2015. The Directorate of Higher Education still led by C Khalong Ao as director according to its website. He retired in June 2015.
The latest status of manpower and institutions in Veterinary & Animal Husbandry’s website was on 2003. The Department of Health & Family Welfare website is ailing with ‘obsolete’ data.
While State Resource Centre for Women, Nagaland is active offline activities, it’s online avatar was not ‘resourceful’ and has not been updated since 2014. The same was the case for NSDMA and Nagaland Home Guard and Civil Defense.
The Department of Information Technology & Communication (IT&C) is meant to act as a promoter/facilitator in the field of Information Technology in the state but news on its latest activities were missing on its website.
Next on the series - Nagaland Government dept websites that are ‘alive and kicking’; District Profiles.
