AP Government Launches 161 Services Via Whatsapp
During Yuva Galam padayatra before general elections, Lokesh had promised a better delivery system by providing all services online through WA
IT Minister Nara Lokesh after launching 161 government services on WhatsApp at Undavalli on Thursday
Amaravati: In a bid to move closer to the people, Andhra Pradesh Government on Thursday announced the launching of 161 services on WhatsApp, claiming it the first initiative in any State in India.
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu in a posting on X said that in 1995, it was e-governance and now they have started governance on WhatsApp. People can avail certificates with bar codes through WhatsApp and submit applications and complaints through the micro-blogging site in Telugu or English or transmit voice message. The initiative was launched here by IT, Electronics, Education and Real-Time Governance Minister Nara Lokesh.
Lokesh said the initiative will ensure transparency, speed and accountability. Departments such as Endowments, Energy, APSRTC, Revenue, Anna Canteens, CM Relief Fund, Municipal Administration and Urban Development will provide various services on WhatsApp.
During the Yuva Galam padayatra before the general elections, Lokesh had promised a better delivery system by providing all services online through WhatsApp. The State Government signed a MoU with Meta on October 22 last year for using their platform.
Naming the programme as Mana Mitra, the State Government has allotted an official WhatsApp number 9552300009 for better citizen connect. Lokesh said "this is a very complicated task. In the first phase, we are making 161 civil services available. In the second phase, we will start 360 civil services. WhatsApp Governance is the bridge between the government and the people. The public government takes the responsibility of providing certificates in real time. When certificates are provided, there will be a special QR code on them. If you scan that QR code, the link will go to the AP government website.
With this, there will be no room for fake certificates. "We have also decided to bring blockchain technology soon. Now, we have brought many services along with revenue, municipal, and endowment services through number selection. In the second phase, we will also implement it through AI bot and voice. We are the first state in the world to implement WhatsApp governance."
Meta India Vice President and Head Sandhya Devanathan said, “It is a great pleasure to be among you today. “Mana Mitra” WhatsApp services are being launched. WhatsApp plays a prominent role in everyone's life. We will provide 161 civic services to everyone through our friend. We have created WhatsApp governance to make it easy for people to use. We have worked hard for WhatsApp governance services. We will make Mana Mitra even better together with the AP government.”
