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Sixteen district magistrates from across the country were felicitated for their work at the first The Indian Express Excellence in Governance Awards Wednesday evening. The awards were handed across 16 categories ranging from Agriculture to Education and Technology to Women Development. The winners were chosen from 249 entries received from 84 districts in 24 states.
As many as five Union Ministers were present to celebrate the awards — Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said that while an “audit of performance” is important, a good officer can “make miracles”. SEE PHOTOS HERE.
Below is the full list of winners:
East Godavari (AP)
Skill Development
Under the Kaushal Godavari project, 16,000 youths have found jobs — from tribal girls working at Foxconn in Nellore to young priests getting offers from a temple in Dallas.
Tirunelveli (TN)
Implementation of Central Schemes
A drainage system in parched Pulankulam village to process waste water has led to over 100 soak pits being built — 32,000 litres can be treated a day.
Bijapur (Chhattisgarh)
Health
In two years, new operation theaters, a maternal and neo-natal care centre with 50 beds have been set up at the district hospital, which now conducts over 300 surgeries.
Akola (Maharashtra)
Community Involvement
A three-month citizen movement to clean the Morna river involved 28,000 local residents who removed 19,300 water hyacinths and 8,440 plastic
articles.
South Sikkim
NorthEast Districts
Six-month pilot project in Rong Gram Panchayat led to six schools being overhauled with a range of measures: Infrastructure, mid-day meals, smart classes and career-counselling.
Vizianagaram (AP)
Energy
Initiative to convert traditional energy resources to alternative methods led to solar panels at the collector’s office, a 1MW solar plant and LEDs across the district for street lighting.
Jagtial (Telangana)
Education
Under Uttejam to tackle poor pass rates in schools, extra one-hour classes before and after schools were started. For two straight years, Jagtial recorded the highest SSC pass rate.
Navi Mumbai
Technology Implementation
Integrated Intelligent Transport System (IITS) brought down complaints of buses skipping stops, route violations, and overspeeding or underspeeding by 50 per cent.
Osamanabad (Maharashtra)
Agriculture
In an area known for high number of farmers’ suicides, Krushi Kranti ensured financial aid under schemes and turned villages into floriculture centres.
Valsad (Gujarat)
Inclusive Innovation
In 2016, over 26 lives were lost in floods. The early warning system, E-Megh, ensured zero deaths by 2018. It includes real-time data, auto-generated calls, SMSes and flood maps.
East Godavari (AP)
Left-Wing Extremism District
Digital connectivity through Google’s X Fsoc technology and the state’s fibre grid network has connected seven tribal villages with the outside world.
Kullu (HP)
Social Welfare
A garbage dumping site is now a nature park on the banks of the Beas river at 1250m above sea level. The garbage was buried while better soil was transported from 5 km away.
Nagpur (Maharashtra)
Child Development
In tribal ashram schools, the Jiwhala regimen provided video and reading material to help boys and girls know their rights and speak up against any abuse.
Jhabua (MP)
Woman Development
Sathidar Abhiyan empowered women and children, with officials meeting tribal leaders to end the reverse dowry system under which the bride’s family was paid money.
Udhampur (J&K)
J&K Districts
Project Rahat provided connectivity in villages, with 170 bridges providing access to 327 schools and 183 ration depots.
Cachar (Assam)
Border Districts
Debo Na Nebo Na (Won’t Give, Won’t Take), an anti-corruption movement logged 13,075 complaints though calls, 30,000 through drop-boxes and 472 through an app.