Govt. will use WhatsApp for issuance of caste, income certificates, says Chandrababu Naidu

Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu plans to use WhatsApp for issuing certificates, emphasizing real-time governance and technology integration.

Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has said that WhatsApp, a social media platform, would be utilised for issuance of certificates such as caste and income.

At a review meeting on RTGES (Real-Time Governance Society) on Tuesday, the Chief Minister said that a new system would be developed where citizens could use WhatsApp to obtain the certificates. “Everything is going digital, and WhatsApp Governance will be the future. The goal is to deliver the best services through ‘WhatsApp Governance’ by collecting and integrating data from each department,” he said.

To permanently resolve the difficulties in obtaining birth and death certificates, Mr. Naidu announced plans to launch a new web portal on January 1. He instructed officials to run the portal in coordination with the Panchayat Raj and Urban Development departments. He asked them to develop a unified portal to monitor projects costing over ₹100 crore. This portal should update information in real time for 80 Central government projects being carried out in the State, the Chief Minister said.

Suggesting using technologies like AI and deeptech to quickly resolve public grievances, Mr. Naidu instructed officials at the RTGS to monitor grievance resolution and public satisfaction levels and extensively use technology in all government departments to provide effective governance. He emphasised collecting real-time data and integrating it with other departments, with overall monitoring by RTGS. 

He told officials to integrate visuals collected through drones, CCTV cameras, satellites, and Internet of Things (IoT) devices. Citing the example of confirming ganja plantations using drones based on Google Maps, he suggested using drones to identify crop diseases and alert farmers. Use drones to identify accident-prone areas on State roads and find solutions, he said.

The officials informed the Chief Minister that farmers were satisfied with the government’s paddy procurement programme. Through IVRS surveys, over 90% of farmers expressed satisfaction with the pricing, timely payments within 48 hours, transportation facilities, and availability of gunny bags.

Ninety-five per cent of the geotagging of households across the State had been completed, they said.