New Delhi, Feb 21 (IANS) A digital platform launched by Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Saturday promises to bring transparency and minimise human intervention in admissions to schools under the Economically Weaker Section (EWS), Disadvantaged Group (DG), and Children With Special Needs (CWSN) categories.

Chief Minister Gupta said that the earlier outdated and insecure software for school admissions has been replaced with a secure, cloud-based system. “A comprehensive security audit was conducted prior to launch to ensure data protection and transparency,” she said.

To prevent fraud and duplication, Aadhaar-based identity verification and digital verification of birth certificates have been made mandatory. Income certificates will also be verified directly through an integrated online system, significantly reducing the scope for malpractice, said an official statement.

“This system will ensure that eligible children receive their rightful access to free education in private schools in a fair and transparent manner,” said the Chief Minister.

She noted that this is a highly sensitive matter aimed at ensuring quality education for genuine beneficiaries.

“Earlier, multiple forms were submitted for the same child and middlemen manipulated the system. With Aadhaar linkage, online applications, digital document verification and duplication control mechanisms, the entire process will now be transparent, swift and fair, effectively eliminating intermediaries,” said the statement.

The admission process will be fully online and transparent. Eligibility will be verified digitally, and seat allocation will be conducted through an automated system. Parents will receive real-time updates on application status. Reduced human intervention will curb corruption and unnecessary delays, said the statement.

The key IT initiatives launched by the Chief Minister on Saturday included the integration of e-District services with the Common Service Centre (CSC) network, said the statement.

Citizens will no longer need to visit multiple government offices for minor tasks. Over 7,000 active CSC centres across Delhi will provide services locally, it said.

Under this initiative, approximately 75 e-District services, including income, caste and residence certificates; birth and death certificates; services related to social welfare, food and civil supplies, labour, and education will be available, it said.

Each service will carry a nominal fee of Rs 30, ensuring transparency and equal accessibility, said the statement.

The Chief Minister described this as a historic step that will curb financial exploitation by private cyber cafes and ensure affordable, simple and transparent government services across the capital.

Chief Minister Gupta also announced that, for the first time, a comprehensive digital record of all Delhi Government assets has been created through an Asset Management Portal. Information regarding land, buildings, availability and encroachments can now be accessed on a single platform.

Through the ‘CM Pragati’ portal, all government projects are being monitored in real time. The status of projects, approvals granted, pending files and reasons for delay are directly accessible at the Chief Minister’s level. This will accelerate execution, prevent cost escalation and safeguard public funds, said the statement.

Speaking at the event, Delhi Education Minister Ashish Sood stated that the department, in collaboration with the National Informatics Centre (NIC), has developed a new digital portal for children under the EWS, DG and CWSN categories.

He said that the portal, developed under the guidance and supervision of the concerned department of the Government of India, has been designed to prevent duplication and any form of irregularity, ensure stronger security, and make the admission process fully transparent.

Sood informed that the government provides crores of rupees every year to schools towards fees, uniforms and other expenses for children admitted under the EWS category.

“This is public money derived from taxpayers, and it is the government’s priority to ensure that these funds reach the rightful beneficiaries and that the benefits of schemes extend to the last person in the queue,” he said.

Delhi IT Minister Pankaj Kumar Singh said that the CM Jan Sunwai Portal and app will enable citizens to lodge and track complaints online.

He added that a Cyber Crisis Management Plan has been implemented to strengthen the security of government websites and data.

Over 200 departments are functioning through the e-Office system, promoting paperless governance, and all government websites have been integrated onto a unified platform, he said.

A WhatsApp-based service will soon be launched, allowing citizens to access information and services through chat, he said.

–IANS

rch/svn