Govt information officers to be provided with smartphones

These phones will have apps such as Twitter and all officers have been directed to open their accounts on the micro blogging site

The central government’s information officers are set to receive smartphones to disseminate information in real-time.

According to sources, the proposal has been sanctioned and distribution of phones will start soon.

These phones will have all the modern features and social media apps such as Twitter. All officers have been directed to open accounts on the microblogging site. They are required to have an official handle through which they can regularly tweet the achievements and activities of their respective departments or ministries.

Officials said the scheme provides for availing a smartphone priced at Rs 14,000. While there were many contenders, the ZenFone line from ASUS has emerged the front-runner,  sources added.

Taiwan-based ASUS is a leading multinational computer hardware and electronics manufacturer.

However, the smartphones will be provided to only those officers who haven’t taken a laptop from the government for official use and will be optional. “The idea is to make information officers attuned to the latest happenings through social media, so that they actively participate in them to spread the government’s viewpoint as well,” an official explained.

India will overtake the US as the second-largest market for smartphones in the world by 2016 as smart mobile devices become affordable, global research firm eMarketer had said in a report on December 22, 2015.

“China will continue to lead the world rankings in 2016 with 624.7 million smartphones, followed by India (204.1 million), the US (198.5 million), Russia (65.1 million) and Japan (61.2 million),” the report had said.