PIB Bags Award

First Web Ratna Awards 2009 Presented by A.Raja Today
DIT Launches an access friendly Website

The Press Information Bureau (PIB) has bagged the first “Platinum Icon” in Web Ratna Awards 2009 for “Outstanding Web Content” for its user friendly and interactive website http://www.pib.nic.in. Besides PIB, others who got “Platinum Icon” today in other categories viz. “Citizen Centric Service”, “Public Participation Initiative”, “Innovative Use of Technology”, “Comprehensive Web Presence-Ministry”, “Comprehensive Web Presence-State” etc., are Indian Railways Passenger Reservation Enquiry System, CIC Online: Filling of Appeal & Complaints online with CIC, Indian Tsunami Early Warning System, Department of Economic Affairs and Tamil Nadu respectively. Smt. Neelam Kapur, Pr. D.G. received the “Platinum Icon” from Thiru A. Raja, the Union Minister of Communications & Information Technology on behalf of PIB.

In addition to the recipients of “Platinum Icon” i.e. the best award in each category, 16 received “Gold Icon” and “Silver Icon” in each of the different categories for the second & third best websites. Complete list of awardees is available on http://India.gov.in.

Altogether 24 organizations received Web Ratna Platinum, Gold and Silver Icon from Thiru A. Raja, the Union Minister of Communications & Information Technology.

Speaking on the occasion, Thiru A. Raja said that Information Technology holds tremendous potential to extend and enable access to critical information and delivery of public services in a far more efficient and effective manner. Reminding the people who need to access this information and services the most are the ones that currently have virtually little or no access to electronic service delivery channels. He emphasized the need to work together to develop and implement strategies and mechanisms to reach them.

The Minister also launched a new Access Friendly website of Department of Information Technology, www.mit.gov.in on the occasion to make internet accessible to visually impaired and physically challenged persons so that they too can equally benefit from the ICT revolution.

On the occasion, Shri Sachin Pilot, the Union Minister of State for Communications & Information Technology stressed upon the need to increase the penetration of internet and computers to remotest areas of the country to ensure an inclusive digitization of service delivery. He added that enhanced allocation to IT sector calls for concerted effort on part of all stakeholders to translate the same into commensurate enhancement in service delivery.

PIB along with 23 other awardees have been chosen out of 248 nominations received from 27 States/Union Territories as well as from the Ministries/Departments of Government India. These awardees were selected after an in-depth and comprehensive online and offline evaluation by an independent Jury which comprised representatives of IIM (Ahmedabad), IIT (Delhi), NASSCOM, Cyber Media (India) Ltd., Secretary (Department of Information Technology) and Director General (National Informatics Centre), among others. In order to choose the best websites in each category the Jury has evolved a matrix of parameters including “impact innovation”, “significance to common man”, “use of technology”, “sustainability” etc.

The PIB website is more than ten years old and it carries all outputs in electronic form in three languages (English, Hindi & Urdu) on almost real time basis. It is a unique source of Government publicity material such as press releases, photographs, features, backgrounders and special event content such as Budget, General Elections and Summits etc., which media persons access at a click of mouse anywhere anytime. PIB website caters to over 8000 newspapers, magazines, TV channels, agencies, newswire services and gets over 2.5 lakh hits on an average everyday.

The Web Ratna Awards have been instituted this year under the ambit of the National Portal of India (http://www.India.gov.in) in order to promote more and more innovative e-governance initiatives and to acknowledge due recognition to the exemplary efforts in this direction. The Web Ratna Awards, an initiative under the aegis of India.gov.in, and also an endeavour on its maiden voyage, aims to travel long distances and become an able platform to accredit those who excel in e-governance and other best ICT practices. (PIB)


S.K.Sarda says:
April 21, 2010 at 6:55 am

Congrats to PIB for the excellent Web presentation. It deserves the prize Platinum. We at our blogsite:

http://www.sikkimchamberofcommerce.blogspot.com

use many of the materials of PIB.

I suggest our HCM that IPR should also come out with similar site as PIB maintains where all press releases of Sikkim Govt should be available today as well as Archives for all times to come..

We will then have instant on site record which can be referred anytime by anybody.