Andhra Government to Give Smartphones to 1.4 Crore Women

The government of Andhra Pradesh will give free smartphones to all the members of women's self-help groups in the state to help them avail various government services on the digital platform.

There are around 1.4 crore members in ‘Development of Women and Children in Rural Area’ (DWCRA) groups, also known as the women's self-help groups.

The smartphones will have an Android operating system and will be distributed with a sim card with 1 GB data, unlimited calls and daily 50 SMS facility.

Principal Secretary of Information Technology, Electronics and Communications, K. Vijayanand on 13^th February told that the Andhra Pradesh Technology Service will be the nodal agency for procurement of smart phones.

The guidelines for the same will be announced by a procurement committee. Also a technical committee will be preparing the guidelines to allocate the phones.

Vijayanand said the internet is expected to boost the reach of public services being offered by the government and the step would help bridging the digital divide.

It is important to mention that the state government provides citizen services under different platforms such as Yuva Nestam, E-Pragati, Mee Seva and Real Time Governance. There is also a toll-free number 1100 to file the complaints.

Moreover, there are almost 900 web-based and 100 mobile apps available to give various services to the citizens.