LAHORE (MEDIA
The two day E-Governance Exhibition concluded at the Arfa Software Technology Park on Sunday, setting guidelines for using information technology to streamline governance and citizen services provided by various departments, and soliciting public feedback to improve such services.
The exhibition was organised by the Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB) in order to connect people and government through technology.
Demos and stalls of projects undertaken by the PITB during the last year, including the projects for school and higher education, bus rapid transit system, livestock and agriculture, city district government and health department were arranged for the visitors.
The first 2-day “E-governance Exhibition” in the history of the country was held under the aegis of Punjab Information Technology Board at Arfa Software Technology Park. Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif inaugurated the exhibition. Chairman Punjab Information Technology Board Dr Umar Saif and other officials were also present on this occasion. As many as 42 software projects completed jointly with various departments of provincial government have been displayed in the exhibition which are playing an effective role in good governance, transparency and providing assistance to citizens.
More than 1,500 registered guests from different backgrounds including students and professionals attended the exhibition. Those witnessing the exhibition had an opportunity of direct discussion with project managers of various departments on this occasion. Modern software projects displayed in the exhibition included diseases surveillance system, centralized blood bank system and high court case management system. The management of Punjab Information Technology Board had also displayed software of getting online FIR registration of FIR at one hundred model police stations. The other projects included online law portal, 24 hours helpline, dengue tracking system and E-library.
Speaking on this occasion Punjab Information Technology Board chairman said Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif had not only encouraged full utilisation of information technology for ensuring cooperation of government departments to the citizens without any hindrance but also took practical steps for its use. He said the CM had appreciated the performance of PITB and termed it a milestone with regard to good governance. PITB also signed various projects with prominent companies Oracle, Cisco, Huawei, Microsoft, Teradata, Transworld and Wateen Telecome. PITB will set up an IT academy jointly with ORICAL where certification programmes of ORICAL technologies recognized at international level will be launched under concessionary fee. PITB will set up Microsoft innovation center with the cooperation of Microsoft Company where projects of modern technologies and employment scheme will be started which will be aimed at helping the students in providing jobs through online programmes. The services of those secretaries of various departments were appreciated who played their important role in introducing information technology with the help of PITB in their respective departments.
Talking to Daily Times, PITB Programme Director Fasieh Mehta said that the exhibition was an effort to create awareness about the extensive work being done at the PITB.
He said the objective of the event was to create awareness amongst the public and other stakeholders about the IT based good-governance projects of the Punjab government.