Nagaland Assembly goes paperless, becomes first state in India to implement NeVA

Our Correspondent

Kohima, March 19 (EMN): The Nagaland Legislative Assembly (NLA) on Saturday became the first in the country to implement the National e-Vidhan Application (NeVA) programme, an effort to enhance efficacy and transparency by conducting assembly session in paperless mode.

For the first time, a tablet or e-book each was attached on the tables of the 60 legislators when the Budget session for year 2022-23 began on Saturday. The ongoing session of the 13th NLA will conclude on March 25.

“This is the medium through which we will be using this application in our Assembly as part of our pursuit to have a paperless Assembly,” said NLA Speaker Sharingain Longkumer in his statement on the new application.

He informed that the e-books will remain attached inside the Assembly hall and not meant to be removed. Similar systems outside the framework of NeVA have been in operation in Himachal Pradesh and many other state assemblies are moving in this direction, he added.

He said that the NeVA system is part of a continuous effort initiated during the time of former Speaker Dr. Chotisuh Sazo, and the NLA received the funding only early last year.

“I am happy to share the pride in the final implementation of the NeVA system,” Longkumer said.

While maintaining that some members had already undergone training to get familiarise with the preliminary part of it, he said the NLA will scale it up in the coming days to take full advantage of the e-Vidhan system in the Assembly’s functioning.

“Eventually, in the short run itself, we would have achieved one of its targets of bringing about a paperless Assembly. Once other Assemblies also implement it, all Assemblies and the Parliament of India will be networked together effectively. We will be continuing with the training programme for the benefit of all the Hon’ble Members in the coming days too. I would appeal to all of you to benefit from it,” he said.

Meanwhile, the speaker informed that the project is funded by the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs, Government of India on 90:10rationwith state’s 10% share extended by the chief minister.

‘The Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs, Government of India, has complimented the State Assembly of Nagaland for being the first in the country to operationalise it,’ he said.