SHILLONG, Jan 19: In recognition of outstanding contributions to public service innovation, Chief Minister Conrad Sangma applauded and awarded several innovators at a ceremony held at Vivanta Meghalaya here on Friday.
The event, organised by the Centre for Innovations in Public Systems (CIPS) in collaboration with the Government Innovation Lab (GIL), Meghalaya government, and the Administrative Staff College of India (ASCI), acknowledged achievers in Education, Health, Information Technology, and Rural Development.
During his address as the chief guest, the chief minister emphasised the importance of identifying problems before seeking solutions.
He urged bureaucrats to simplify processes as a significant form of innovation for state governments aiming for positive change.
Sangma acknowledged the collaborative efforts of administrative staff and functionaries, attributing a multitude of innovations in various sectors to their decentralised approach.
He humorously further also added that the bureaucrats also should work towards making a lot of the processes easier, and it would be the best form of innovation for the state governments which want to make a change in their respective regions.
He also informed that the State’s External Aided Projects (EAP) funding demand has increased to Rs 12,500 crore from Rs 2,500 crore in the last 5 years.
Meghalaya has come up to the level of larger states in terms of EAP funding requirement due to the fact that there is a strong manpower that is able to prepare Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) and adhere to the requirements of EAPs in a very short period of time, he mentioned. The award ceremony also had Dr VK Paul, Member, NITI Aayog, as the guest of honour who applauded Meghalaya for being one of the few states in the country to have allotted one of the highest budgets for the healthcare sector, that being 9 per cent.
Development Commissioner and Principal Secretary, Health department, Sampath Kumar, also spoke about Meghalaya’s State Capability Enhancement Approach to drive policy and innovation in solving complex development problems.
The chief minister along with the other dignitaries also released a book called ‘Celebrating Inclusive Innovations’.
The awardees were Sampath Kumar for contributing to positive public health management in Meghalaya, while Dr Phunchok Norboo, Mission Director in Ladakh, on integrating Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission with e-Hospital.
Ram Kumar S was awarded for Meghalaya Drone Delivery Network, and A Arun Prince Milton, for developing a rapid and cost-effective visual diagnostic kit for African Swine Fever virus. Shantanu Gotmare, IAS, was awarded for Kritagyata, an online pension sanction and payment tracking system.
In Himachal Pradesh, Mukesh Repaswal, was awarded for Mukhya Mantri Seva Sankalp 1100. Other awardees include Krishna Kumar, Issac Zothanpuia, Pallav Gopal Jha, Shyambir, Dev Raj Dhiman, Varnali Deka, Purva Garg, Shiv Kumar Upadhyaya & Deepak Shah, Prasada Rao Vaddarapu, Ajit Kumar Ranjan, and Chete Lohe.
The award ceremony also included a Khasi folk dance performance followed by the vote of thanks by Dr Valli Manickam, Director of CIPS and Dean of Research and Management Studies, ASCI, Hyderabad.
