Despite the low per capita income, Kerala has become a role model with human development indces that match those of the developed nations of the world. The southern state, with near 100 per cent literacy, low infant mortality (5.59 per cent), minimum maternal mortality (0.26 per cent), higher average life expectancy (75.2 years), the best public health management, the least school dropouts and crime rates, is miles ahead of most states in India.

In 1996, Kerala launched a people's plan movement, giving autonomy to local self-government bodies in decision-making. As part of the campaign, all stakeholders had a say while implementing the projects, democratising the governance process at the grassroots level.

The experiment had a huge impact on women's empowerment in the state as they actively participated in the local planning process. Later, the state set up a poverty eradication mission for poor women, and with project 'Kudumbashree', organised them through neighbourhood societies. Kudumbashree has enabled poor women to improve their lot through leadership training programmes and opportunities to participate in social action.

In 2009, Kerala reserved 50 per cent seats in local self-government bodies for women. Many poor women who actively participated in Kudumbashree programmes were elected to such bodies. Today, 54 per cent of elected representatives in these organisations are women, reflecting the better sex ratio of the state.

Kerala set up a launchpad for e-literacy through the Akshaya Project and the IT@School programme way back in 2002. It was a vision that has made Kerala a digital powerhouse in the country, being one of India's most connected states with a high tele density of over 103 per cent and high internet penetration of over 40 per cent. The state achieved another milestone with all its gram panchayats being connected through optical fibre network. Kerala also has the highest Aadhaar enrolment of 99.5 per cent, linking 34.3 million people.

"After the Left Front government came to power in 2016, we have insisted on biometric punching-in at government offices to ensure attendance, and introduced paperless offices to speed up file movement," says Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. The state also has the rare distinction of having India's first high-speed rural broadband network in Idukki district and Malappuram being recognised as the first e-literate district in the country.

The state has implemented e-procurement to enhance transparency and efficiency in public procurement activities and monitor these on a real-time basis for all tenders above

Rs 5 lakh. Over 86,000 tenders, with a total value over Rs 50,000 crore, have been floated through the eProcurement system. The implementation of eOffice has helped bring in more efficiency, speed and transparency in the way files are managed at the various departments of the state government. Today, the state is also using an app to monitor execution of developmental projects that are above Rs 5 crore. Status reports are shared among the CM's office, the respective minister's office, chief secretary and department heads.

The Citizen's Call Centre (CCC) is a single window facility that enables citizens and the government to interact effectively, enabling the dissemination of critical information, which is otherwise either inaccessible or difficult for citizens to trace. The CCC now serves more than 64 government departments, organisations, projects etc. and provides information and complaint registry services for the common people. On an average, it receives 300 calls daily.

'WE'RE BUILDING AN EMPOWERED DIGITAL SOCIETY'

By Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan

Kerala has effectively used information technology in governance to ensure transparency and improve quality of services. We are working on an ambitious plan to set up the state's own fibre optic pathway-the Kerala Fibre Optic Network (KFON) with an estimated budget of Rs 1,028 crore to improve Internet connectivity and provide free Internet access to two million poor families by October 2018.

The Kerala State IT Infrastructure Ltd and Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) have jointly set up a special purpose vehicle for the project. The fibre optic pathway will be laid through KSEB's power lines. The high broadband width will improve quality of governance and state services will be a click away. We have started setting up smart classrooms in every government school. Some 2,000 wi-fi hotspots will be set up across the state, from where schools, hospitals and government offices will be connected.

We believe progress depends a lot on building an empowered digital society. When the state becomes a gigabyte destination, it will kickstart a revolution in the IT sector. Our government's vision is faster growth rates in all sectors and quality living standards for the people of Kerala. We have limited resources and many hurdles to cross. But we are banking on our strengths to meet the challenges. We are confident that we will deliver on all our goals during the tenure of this government.