Gone are the days when the Government of India websites were near-exact replicas of web design software samples; where marquee elements rolled across the screen ad nauseam, and hyperlinks rarely, if ever, trumped the ‘404 error’. In August last year, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting set aside a whopping ₹22.5 crore to establish a new media wing. One that they hoped would “integrate the communication tools horizontally and vertically through various social media platforms”. Despite the shift in power at the centre, many other departments and ministries have followed suit, launching a host of apps and games, collaborating with techies to juice up their sites. Here are our picks.
Tripigator and the Incredible India Walking Tours app
Earlier this year, the Ministry of Tourism launched an app as well as a ‘trip planning engine’. The Walking Tour app which is currently available only on Blackberry, but should be available soon for Android users, acts as a virtual tour guide, leading users through prominent tourist destinations across the country. The app currently maps sites in 16 Indian cities but plans are afoot for another 20.
While Walking Tour helps tourists on the go, Tripigator assists users who are still planning their holiday. The engine, which was created by three IIT alumni, requires only a few basic inputs to churn out a personalised itinerary. According to the Ministry, over 1,500 users have accessed the site on a daily basis since its launch two months ago.
“Government offices have truly come of age. While we had experimented with the Google trip planner last year, with Tripigator and the Walking Tours app we’re taking it to the next level,” says a senior ministry official, who didn’t want to be named. “Besides,” he adds, “there are two more apps in the pipeline.”
MEA India
This nifty app by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) is meant to be a “single window source for all information related to the ministry’s citizen-centric services.” From passport, visa and consular services to addresses of Indian missions in various countries and information on pilgrimages like Kailash Yatra and Haj, the app covers considerable ground. It also has a ‘public diplomacy’ section that offers a primer on the MEA and India’s foreign affairs machinery. Launched in May, the MEA app has hit over 10,000 installations already.
Guardians of the Skies (G0tS)
Released by the Indian Air Force (IAF) in early July, Guardians of the Skies is a 3D video game designed to “connect to the youth and increase brand IAF’s image.” Available on Android, iOS and Windows platforms, GotS is a simulator, role-playing game that features a large fleet of existing IAF aircraft.
Developed by Threye, a company that specialises in 3D innovations, the premise of the game is to engage in defence missions against the nation of ‘Zaruzia’. While the first phase of the game, including one training mission and two operational missions, are accessible to users, eight additional missions will be released in October this year.
Click n Complain
In May, the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) launched Click n Complain, a rather self-explanatory app, which allows users to take a photograph of any public works site that needs repairs within NDMC’s area of jurisdiction and share it with them. While it’s early days yet to gauge whether the app will put an end to waiting eternally in queues to register a simple grievance, that it allows users to track the status of the complaint certainly seems like a step in the right direction.
“We have been witnessing huge traffic since the launch,” says Jalaj Srivastava, chairman, NDMC. “A minimum of 300 complaints come in every day through the app, and we address as many as we can.”
ASI Delhi
An initiative of the Delhi circle of ASI, this app provides not only basic information regarding the numerous monuments in Delhi but also lists information about their history. The app also allows you to pick the best route for a ‘monument hop’.
ASI has also worked with Google Street View to launch the Street View Trekker, through which panoramic images of 30 heritage sites across India can be viewed on the Google Cultural Institute’s site.
Traffic apps
Launched by the traffic police departments of Delhi, Gurgaon, Bangalore and Pune, these traffic apps are among the handiest tools for daily city commuters. Available on various platforms, they provide live traffic maps and alerts from the traffic police control rooms in each of these cities. They include features such as distress buttons that connect directly to the women’s helpline, help file complaints against errant autorickshaw drivers or report traffic problems to the control room. Some even detail a list of traffic fines, potentially beating bribe takers at their game.