Ludhiana: The municipal corporation’s ambitious transition to a paperless “e-nigam” system has hit a logistical bottleneck, with officials forced to wait at least a month for the delivery of essential tablet computers.The project aims to eliminate physical paperwork by shifting all General House and Finance and Contracts Committee meetings to a digital platform. While the civic body has finalised the tender for 132 tablets, the rollout has been pushed back as the hardware arrives in staggered phases.In a bid to maintain momentum, the administration is attempting to secure a limited number of devices for the upcoming meeting fo the finance committee. A full implementation for the entire House is now expected by next month. The delay follows a series of revised timelines; the project was originally slated for Feb before being moved to March.The shift to “e-nigam” follows the pattern of the Punjab assembly, making Ludhiana the first municipal corporation in the state to adopt such a digital framework. This modernisation effort complements the city’s existing e-office system, which currently handles roughly 90% of routine administrative files.Financial hurdles also contributed to the wait. The project’s cost rose from an initial ₹1-crore estimate to ₹1.19 crore following a technical audit by the chief engineer. Beyond the hardware arrival, officials noted that a training period is planned to help councillors — many of whom are accustomed to traditional hard copies — adapt to the digital interface.Municipal commissioner Neeru Katyal Gupta confirmed that the tender was finalised and the city was now simply waiting to take delivery of the equipment.Why the Wait MattersThe transition to a paperless House is more than a technical upgrade; it is a shift in legislative efficiency. The one-month delay highlights the challenges of bulk hardware procurement and the technical specifications required for govt-grade security.Cutting the Cord and the CostOnce active, the system will save the corporation lakhs of rupees currently spent on printing massive bundles of meeting agendas for dozens of members. In the interim, officials have already begun testing the waters, with some recent committee discussions conducted via laptops rather than the usual reams of paper.MSID:: 130991815 413 |
