SRINAGAR, DEC 27: In a proactive move to bolster cyber security and streamline public service accessibility, the Government of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir has issued directives to all departments.
Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo chaired a meeting with Administrative Secretaries last week, during which crucial decisions were made to address potential cyber threats and improve citizen services.
As part of the initiative, all government departments have been instructed to update their websites regularly to counter potential cyber threats.
Sources infomred Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo emphasised the importance of a vigilant approach to cybersecurity. In alignment with this directive, the Information Technology Department has been tasked with assigning the National Informatics Centre (NIC) and Jammu and Kashmir e-Governance Agency (JaKeGA) to conduct regular audits of departmental websites.
This move aims to establish a centralized system for monitoring and enhancing security.
“A website security audit is a process that assesses websites/applications for vulnerabilities and loopholes,” official sources explained. They further emphasized that the Information Technology Act mandates security audits for all applications and web services to be eligible for hosting in the State Data Centre.
To ensure compliance, departments are directed to obtain security audits from CERT-In, a Government of India-certified empanelled agency. They must then submit a “safe to host” certificate to the State Data Centre team.
Simultaneously, the government is taking steps to facilitate easy access to online services for the general public. Deliberations were held on the establishment of Common Service Centers (CSCs) within government offices. These centres, supervised by respective in-charges, will provide comprehensive guidance to the public, enabling them to make the most of the diverse array of online services offered by the government.
Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo has directed the Information Technology Department, in collaboration with Deputy Commissioners, to identify suitable government offices for the setup of Common Service Centers. The Common Service Centre Scheme is designed to provide a centralized framework for the delivery of services to citizens while ensuring systemic viability and sustainability.
Recognizing the importance of quality grievance redressal, Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo stressed the need for the development of a robust grievance redressal mechanism. The Secretary of public Grievances has been tasked with undertaking an analytical study of available data, exploring mechanisms for digitizing public grievances, categorizing grievances, developing a feedback mechanism, and creating a common portal for all grievances received in different offices in consultation with the IT Department/NIC.
