CM Launches Digital Gate Pass System to Streamline Public Interaction at Himachal Secretariat.
Shimla:
In a major step towards digital governance and improving public access to government services, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Friday launched the “Unified Digital Calendar and Appointment Management System” along with a new digital gate pass facility at the Himachal Pradesh State Secretariat.
The initiative aims to simplify and streamline the process of scheduling appointments and meetings with the Chief Minister while enhancing coordination among government departments and officials.
Under the newly introduced system, visitors seeking meetings at the Secretariat can now obtain digitally generated gate passes through an online platform, removing the need for manual paperwork and lengthy entry procedures. The system has been integrated with the existing entry mechanism and is designed to make public interaction with the government more convenient, secure and efficient.
Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister said that the platform would serve as a “digital bridge” between the government and the people of the state. He stated that the system would not only function as the primary interface for the Chief Minister’s Office but would also facilitate seamless management of official schedules and professional calendars of officers across various government departments.
“The initiative will ensure convenient and efficient public interactions while improving coordination within the government machinery,” the Chief Minister said.
The digital gate pass system includes advanced identity verification features such as OTP-based authentication and Aadhaar-enabled face authentication. Security personnel at the Secretariat will verify visitor entry through barcode scanning on the digitally generated gate passes.
Officials said that visitors arriving without prior appointments would also be able to obtain gate passes directly at the reception through the same digital system.
The integrated platform will further enable government departments to submit meeting requests through a centralized online mechanism. Once approved, the meeting schedules will automatically synchronize with the digital calendars of all concerned officers, while instant notifications will be sent to the respective departments.
Earlier, while chairing a review meeting of the General Administration Department, the Chief Minister directed officials to improve visitor services at Himachal Bhawan, Himachal Sadan and Himachal Bhawan. He emphasized maintaining better cleanliness standards and ensuring the availability of nutritious and quality food for visitors staying at these government establishments.
He also directed that maintenance and repair work of these Bhawans be undertaken by the Public Works Department and stressed the need for adopting a professional approach in their management and operations to provide better public facilities.
The Chief Minister further instructed officials to launch the initiative on a pilot basis at Himachal Bhawan in Delhi.
Reviewing the ongoing construction of Himachal Niketan, he directed officials to complete the project before June 15. He also instructed authorities to introduce QR code-based payment facilities to facilitate hassle-free bookings at government accommodations, adding that the system should eventually be extended for circuit house bookings across the state.
Additional Chief Secretary K.K. Pant joined the meeting virtually from Delhi. Principal Secretary Devesh Kumar, Secretaries Dr. Abhishek Jain, Rakesh Kanwar and Ashish Singhmar, Director Digital Technologies and Governance Dr. Nipun Jindal, Special Secretary GAD Harbans Singh Brascon, Deputy Secretary GAD Anil Mankotia and other senior officers were also present during the meeting.
