Extension of central govt support for CIC projects urged

Gangtok, July 10 (UNI) Sikkim Urban Development Minister D D Bhutia today demanded continuation of Central government support for ongoing Central Information Centres(CIC) for another five years.

The minister's demand came in the wake of the Centre's porposal to discontinue the assistance to the CICs and hand them over to the state governments by February next year as they were not sustainable.

Addressing a three-day workshop on substainability of CICs and review meeting on progress of IT projects in North Eastern States on its inaugural day, Mr Bhutia said the success of the project should not be judged by the return on its investment but by the contribution it made to the development of ecology, society and overall economy.

As many as 487 CICs, including 45 in Sikkim, were set up in the North Eastern states in 2002 after the former Prime Minister asked the officials to initiate steps for faster economic development of the area and to bridge the digital divide between the NE and the rest of the country.

Mr Bhutia said the last five years were spent in using the CICs to familiarise the citizens with IT through training programmes and making initial forays to e-goverance.

He said while some CICs were generating appreciable revenue, some were not able to break even. The state government had deliberated on the issue and realised that economic and commercial viability was not feasible at this stage and it wanted the centre to continue its support to the project.

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