Online issue of caste, income certificates launched

An online pilot that would make it faster and easier for farmers and students to secure services from the State Revenue Department like the issuing of certificates in the shortest possible time, was launched in Mysore today.

The project, that took off in Varuna with the establishment of a 'Land Centre' under the Land Supervision Cell and the Atalji Janasnehi Directorate of the Karnataka government, proposes to initiate the distribution of caste and income certificates to school students and khata certificates to farmers online.

The online distribution of these vital certificates to farmers and students will eliminate the hardships the beneficiaries face at government offices. While this will make the offices paperless, it will reduce the time taken for the delivery of these services, and cut down the workload in the offices concerned. The most important outcome of the service would be its ability to rid the state of the menace of fake certificates.

Under the scheme, caste and income certificates will be processed online at the Nada Katcheri, after receiving applications from students and parents with the supporting documents, the certificates will be laminated and distributed at the respective schools of a student free of cost. A student, with access to the internet can submit his application and pay the required fees online. Once digitally processed, he will be sent an SMS informing him of the outcome.

The first centre for khata certificate issual, established by the department, was inaugurated by Mysore district in-charge minister V Sreenivasa Prasad in Varuna hobli to cater to the taluk. The facility is scheduled to be extended to other parts of Karnataka by the year-end, soon after the Lok Sabha elections.

A proposal to distribute certificates at the doorstep of the beneficiaries by officials visiting their homes will be taken up in Kolar shortly, the minister said.

While the caste certificates will have life-long validity, the income certificates need to be renewed once in five years.

Hailing the scheme, Prasad said, the online issual of certificates would help avoid delays and corruption. Besides, it saves parents from rural areas from visiting taluk offices for certificates. Around 3.5 million applications for caste and income certificates for educational purposes were likely to be received this year as against 3 million last year.

After inaugurating the land centre at Varuna, the Revenue Minister launched the final property registration card issual, automatic khata transfer facility, paperless document processing and online issual of Nada Katcheri documents in the Mysore Zilla Panchayat.

On the lines of the RTC, rights on about 100,000 properties has been established for issual of property registration cards. This, after documents of 300,000 properties were processed in Mysore.