FROM QUEUES TO CLICKS: AMAN ARORA LAUNCHES UNIFIED PORTAL “DIGI PUNJAB” FOR 300 SERVICES
*• All 800+ govt services to be integrated on portal in next two months: Aman Arora*
*• “Good Governance is my mission”: Aman Arora says, portal to ensure time-bound services without any hassle & sifarish*
*• Deadline fixed for every service, delay will reflect on concerned officer’s record, says GG&IT Minister*
*•Govt will now reach you, citizens won’t have to chase govt: Aman Arora*
CHANDIGARH, SEPTEMBER 1:
In a major push towards transparent and citizen-centric governance, Punjab Good Governance and Information Technology Minister Mr. Aman Arora on Tuesday launched ‘Digi.Punjab.gov.in’- the state’s unified digital portal that brings over 300 government services across 12 departments under a single, mobile-friendly platform, ending the era of fragmented portals, manual files and repeated visits to government offices.
After launching the portal at the Mahatma Gandhi State Institute of Public Administration (MGSIPA) here, Mr. Aman Arora said that citizens can now easily access a wide range of essential public services spanning multiple departments. Key offerings include vital health documents like birth and death certificates, medical fitness certificates, home affairs services such as the issuance and renewal of arms licenses, and justice services for marriage registrations under the Punjab Compulsory Registration of Marriages Act and Anand Marriage Act. Additionally, residents can seamlessly utilize labor welfare schemes, local government property transfers, medical education registrations, police verification services including tenant and servant checks, revenue certificates (such as income, residence, and backward area certificates), social justice caste certificates, social security pensions and water supply connection sanctions.
The portal, which will cover all government services (over 800) in the next two months, fixes a timeline for every application, he said.
“Every officer, from top to bottom, will have clear deadlines. Any delay will reflect on their record,” Mr. Aman Arora said, while asserting that corruption thrives only where there is no accountability or transparency, and this system will put an end to both.
The GG&IT Minister emphasised that good governance means a common man gets services without any hassle or bribe. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann-led Punjab government is firmly committed to this principle. The new portal, he said, ensures end-to-end digitisation with real-time tracking and a strong accountability mechanism to remove bureaucratic hurdles and check corruption.
Mr. Aman Arora said, “I remember, not too long ago, sitting in public and hearing the same complaints again and again- ‘Sir, pata nahi file kahan atki hai’, ‘teesri baar chakkar laga raha hoon’. Today, I am happy to say, we are answering those complaints, not with promises, but with a portal.”
“Digi Punjab” is not merely an IT project but reflects the CM Mann led state government’s collective resolve to put citizens above files, Mr. Aman Arora emphasised, while stating, “The daily-wage worker no longer has to lose a day’s pay to get a certificate. A student in a border village will have the same access as someone sitting in Chandigarh. A senior citizen can apply from home instead of standing in queues. Every application is now tracked, timed and answerable- no file will simply “disappear” anymore- and wherever technology cannot yet reach, Sewa Kendras and doorstep delivery service 1076 will continue to act as a bridge.”
The GG&IT Minister said this marks a complete break from the past, when only 30 services were truly online, citizens were forced to navigate a maze of fragmented portals, chase files and rely on agents amid siloed systems and manual paperwork. Digi Punjab flips the model — bringing 300 citizen-centric services onto one phone-friendly platform with real-time tracking via mobile, web and WhatsApp, while for officials it clears file clutter, removes redundancies and fixes timelines at every level. It is a shift from citizens chasing the government to governance reaching the citizen.
Highlighting the robust back-end preparedness for the initiative, Mr. Arora said that over the last four years, the state has digitised the Mawan Dheeyan Satkar Yojana covering over 76 lakh beneficiaries and delivered over 2 crore QR-coded certificates via SMS and WhatsApp. Over 45,000 patwaris, sarpanches and councillors have processed more than one crore applications right from their mobile phones, he added.
“Good governance is my mission. Its not just about technology, it is about restoring people’s trust in the system and that is exactly what we are delivering,” he added, while urging the people of Punjab that this portal belongs to you. Use it, question it.
In a message to the bureaucracy, Mr. Aman Arora said, “Let me be clear to every officer present here — this portal will succeed only if you make it succeed. It is not a website that delivers governance, it is you. Train your staff, guide the citizens and treat every complaint received on this portal as your own family’s complaint.”
Chief Commissioner of Punjab Transparency and Accountability Commission Mr. VK Janjua, Additional Chief Secretary GG&IT department Mr. DK Tiwari, Director Mr. Vishesh Sarangal and senior officials from other departments were also attended the portal launch event.
