This information based strategy and management deals are brought a new concept in the Urban Development of West Bengal. The municipal data bank which gives computerization updated special information form all the holdings of all the wards , all the infrastructural details( roads, pipelines, drainage, stand point, lamp post etc.). All important places and public utilities along with information’s on the non spatial attributes all the owners house takes, evaluates rental status, family numbers, health education, infrastructural availability, structural status of the building, land use etc. etc. The municipal data bank, created with the help of infrastructure and the human resources available within the Municipality in a total digital format, essentially guides the Municipality for E Governance in the Urban West Bengal. This has been conceived and structured by Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority in the middle of 2000n and by far has extended its work in 54 urban local bodies covering a population of little more than 93 Lacs.
Their enthusiasm on the GIS implementation of the State is of people’s participation, cost effectiveness, time savings and it is accepted towards a better management. The flexibilities of the development system accommodates the recent changes as well as the past management records. There are certain areas of distinct changes, which have been consciously adopted for making the technology simpler and adoptable for the people of the municipality, otherwise totally ignorant of the computer system of management. The technology thus created has been totally accepted by the group of elected councilors for their daily Governance and utilization in residing the policy in management. The susceptibility of the entire project is totally which the people of the Municipality who are increasing their revenue cost of more transparency in the system proper exposure and the use of the system at least a dozen of people have been trained while the project is son the implementation stage.
Finally the information Kiosk with the introduction touch screen for the people’s participation in every important matter has given a new dimension of the entire municipal management. Ward level plan identification of deficient areas, monitoring the health system of below poverty level families are among the few which is being practiced in the management of the Municipality. The beginning for a larger tomorrow has been made the entire process has to go a long way with the people of west Bengal participating in this revolutionary process of decentralized planning.
As the GIS mapping continues, the necessity of adopting the MIS (Management Information System) for giving the entire process a sense of totality has been a felt need. The present system of adopting certain schemes in any sectors of the society, (it could be water supply, education, self employment, sewerage & drainage, health, roads, recreation) either for development or maintenance, is often neither fully transparent nor contains any details regarding the beneficiaries. Though the financial accounting of the schemes is being maintained in a traditional manner to get the next allotment of the fund, the social cost benefit is not evaluated. The total amount of inflow of funds from different heads in the urban local bodies is quite substantial and an attempt for self-sustainability is seldom done. In order to provide a better quality of life to the urban population, which is 28% of the total (highest in the country), introduction of front end use of MIS with back end use of GIS is being proposed. GIS will be information data bank with its geographical location and MIS will be the system to use such data bank for planning, execution and implementation of the entire development programme in a holistic manner.
Govt. of West Bengal initiated the implementation of GIS in Municipal Planning since July 2000 through KMDA, Dept. of UD & MA as the nodal functioning agency duly assisted by SUDA for non-KMA municipality. The primary information of all the holdings including tax, house structure, land use, availability of Urban facilities and all infrastructure details was put into digital format both in spatial & non spatial form. It is being used for day to day work of Tax demand notice & collection, preparation of ward level annual plan, identification of deficit area, evaluation of health indicators & Monitoring etc.
Activities of Municipality Concerning
- Birth/Death Registration
- Building Approval
- Revenue/Taxation Record-Update/Modification/Deletion
- Commercial Complex Monitoring
- Trade License
- Health/Hospital Program Monitoring
- Development Project Monitoring
- Stores/Material Management
- Advertisement Planning
- Sports
- Cultural Affairs
- Fire Prevention & Protection
- Forms and Tender Notices
- Infrastructures (Water Supply, Drainage, Roads)
- Natural Calamities
- Municipal Solid Waste
- Building Rules
Application Systems
- Property Tax
- Water & Sewerage Tax
- Building Approvals
- Births & Deaths
- Heath Information
- Dangerous & Offensive Trades