The SMILE App and Its Sustainability
The School Education Department is spending a lot of money on the SMILE App, which was launched under the Nagaland Education Project—The Lighthouse (NECTAR) to monitor teachers’ attendance
- The School Education Department is spending a lot of money
on the SMILE App, which was launched under the Nagaland Education Project—The
Lighthouse (NECTAR) to monitor teachers’ attendance. But I often wonder: once
the NECTAR project ends, who will fund the SMILE App?
- The app still has many issues and doesn’t seem capable of
handling attendance for over 20,000 employees at the same time. This might be
why teachers have to mark their attendance offline, even when a strong 5G network
is available.
- At one point, the Department told school heads to buy SIM
cards with the best network and recharge them for three months using their own
money, promising to pay them back later. But now, as the NECTAR project is
ending, who will ensure they get their money?
- The Department or Government struggles to pay employees’
salaries on time and has delayed clearing pending arrears for many years. Given
the way the Department operates, it’s clear that the SMILE App cannot last long
without enough funds. Running the app requires regular payments and a team to
maintain it.
- The SMILE App was introduced with good intentions, but its
problems raise serious doubts about its effectiveness. If it cannot handle
large-scale attendance properly and will always require more money for
upgrades, how can it last? When salaries are not paid on time and arrears
remain pending, spending on such an app doesn’t seem practical. Instead of
investing in something that may not work in the long run, the Department should
look for better and more affordable solutions. A well-planned digital
attendance system with proper funding and accountability is the key to success.
-
- Hoshika H Sumi
- Primary School Teacher
