Smart move for smart cards

| 07 May 2001 23:42 IST

Goa has decided to issue a smart card to the entire workforce, working in the government or private establishment in the tourist state, by November this year.

A credit sized plastic card having an embedded microchip, the smart card will carry the photograph and fingerprints of the person as well as all other related information.

Taking steps in this regard, the state administration has already opened 14 centres to register the details, while making it mandatory for all the registered firms to supply the information and getting their workforce registered for the smart card.

Chief minister Manohar Parrikar claims that the experiment is being carried out for the first time in the country and the card would be of multipurpose use.

Information on the small chip would include personal particulars and address, employment history, health record, bank account details, insurance, dependants, emergency details, driving licence, ration card, election Id, attendance and access as well as state and company benefits.

"Besides utilising it at various places, it would also help us in ascertaining the total workforce as well as figures of unemployed and the underemployed", states Parrikar.

Against its population of 1.3 million, Goa's total labour force is estimated at around 0.25 million. Over 50,000 of it is engaged in the state administration itself while large number of migrants have also been employed in the tiny state.

Besides personalisation of the card at initial stage, it would also be updated from time to time at various government departments, company offices, banks, health dispensaries, RTO offices and even at the fair price shops.

The government also proposes to appoint inspection staff, equipped with hand-held devices, helping them to read the card and even make updated entries about the checks carried out.

Besides setting up two district-level servers, the state also plans to set up one centralised server in Panaji to manage the smart card database.

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