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The fact that the government could not take advantage of the digital portal launched by the Centre is embarrassing
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Soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched his cashless drive, Union Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had a meeting with top bureaucrats of the State government and bankers to chart a course towards a cashless Goa. It seemed ambitions then and even now because the State was never ahead on the digital curve. It was and still is more of a follower than a leader on e-governance. The delay by the Goa Medical College in taking OPD patient appointments online is an example why the State is behind the digital curve. A system to enable online registration was launched in July this year by the Central government and 60 hospitals joined this portal to make it easier for patients to take appointments, reduce the rush at hospitals and get rid of the queue system which had become a bigger problem than the disease itself. So far, 5.22 lakh appointments have been taken through this system.
For a State that aspires to be a model for others, the fact that the government could not take advantage of the digital portal launched by the Centre is embarrassing. Was it lack of initiative on the part of the government? Or was it a lack of funds? One could blame it on the absence of will to go digital. There seems to be a kind of inertia that keeps the state from marching forward in the use of digital tools to speed-up work in government offices and ease the burden of people who have to put up with inefficiency and delays. One might recall how the effort of a former chief officer of the Margao Municipal Council to digitize the administration was thwarted by councilors who felt a loss of power.
On the other hand, it is not as though the government has been sleeping. Water and power bills can now be paid online. Traders and manufacturers also have the option of paying taxes online. Several forms are available at the click of a mouse, but the State is still a long way from being either cashless or digitizing the administration.
Online registration of patients at the GMC should have been a priority as it would have eased the queues which begin to form as early as five in the morning. This archaic system has given rise to a new brand of entrepreneurs who reserve a place in the queue for a fee. The GMC administration is aware of this situation and so is the government. Given this state of affairs, the government should have grabbed the option to go online when it was presented in July, but five months have gone by and nothing has happened. The Dean of the GMC has promised to accomplish this task in another month, but with elections round the corner and the code of conduct likely to kick in, would politicians allow the GMC to register a significant achievement without taking credit for it? In the era of digital giants Goa is still a dwarf.
