SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir Government is preparing to implement an integrated Data Management Strategy and Action Plan to enable secure data sharing across departments, reduce paperwork for citizens and improve the delivery of public services and welfare benefits.
The proposed strategy was reviewed by Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo during a high-level meeting on Saturday. He directed all departments to cooperate in creating a secure, interoperable and citizen-centric data ecosystem and prepare a time-bound roadmap for its phased implementation.
The initiative aims to establish a common framework for secure sharing and harmonisation of government data, allowing authorised departments to access authenticated information through digital platforms instead of repeatedly asking citizens to submit the same documents. The government said the move would improve inter-departmental coordination, eliminate duplication of records, enhance transparency and ensure faster delivery of services.
The meeting was attended by Administrative Secretaries, the Commissioner Secretary, Planning Development and Monitoring Department, Managing Director of JK Bank, Director General, Economics and Statistics, State Informatics Officer of the National Informatics Centre (NIC), Director Planning and other departmental heads.
Reviewing the proposal, Dulloo said effective digital governance depends on authentic, standardised and secure data. He said the government intends to build an integrated digital governance system where authenticated information, once available with the government, can be securely shared among authorised departments while ensuring privacy, confidentiality and cyber security.
He directed all departments to standardise their datasets in accordance with the proposed data governance framework and called for uniform metadata standards, robust quality assurance mechanisms and secure interoperability protocols to facilitate seamless exchange of information.
The Planning Department presented the proposed framework, which is built around five pillars—Data Governance and Standards, Base Registries and Unique Identifiers, Interoperability and Harmonisation, Data Security and Privacy, and Institutional Capacity and Coordination. The strategy seeks to establish a “Single Source of Truth” by preserving original departmental datasets while enabling secure API-based data exchange to support evidence-based governance, planning and monitoring.
Among the key proposals reviewed was the integration of the Civil Registration System (CRS) with JK Bank to enable automatic initiation of insurance claims under the Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY) and Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY) immediately after the issuance of a death certificate. Once operational, eligible claims will be processed without requiring bereaved families to submit separate applications.
The meeting also discussed linking the Civil Registration System with the Health, Social Welfare and School Education departments so that registration of every birth automatically triggers enrolment for nutrition support, immunisation and other eligible welfare schemes. Integration with APAAR ID is also proposed to facilitate seamless access to school admissions, scholarships and other educational benefits.
In addition, the Chief Secretary reviewed plans to create an integrated database of schools, hospitals, Anganwadi centres and other public institutions using common geographical identifiers to improve planning, infrastructure mapping and resource allocation.
Dulloo directed the departments concerned to prepare a phased implementation plan with clearly defined milestones while ensuring strict compliance with data privacy, cyber security and governance standards. He said the initiative would strengthen evidence-based planning, improve coordination among departments and enable seamless delivery of government services and welfare benefits through secure sharing of authenticated data.
