CHENNAI: The villagers of Poondi in Tiruvallur district have to travel up to 15 kilometres to get their online services done as the e-Seva centre in their village has not been functioning for the past five years.
Opened in 2013 at a cost of Rs 13 lakh by the Rural Development Department, the e-Seva centre functioned only for a few years before going defunct, said villagers of Devendavakkam. “We do not know what happened to the computers inside. Senior citizens here travel up to Oothukottai for online services such as Aadhaar corrections,” said Nallarasu, a local activist.
Nallarasu says there had been no staff and the building too is getting dilapidated. In addition, as there’s no one to oversee it, and at night, the building is used for anti-social activities. “People go there to play cards. Instances of drinking too have been noticed,” said Ramesh, another villager. Villagers have written various complaints to local block-level officers. Ramesh said it is a strenuous task to take a bus to a centre 15 km away for tasks as simple as name change in Aadhaar card. “Elderly people are the worst affected,” he added.
Meanwhile, officials cited lack of use by the residents for closure of the centre, a claim the residents dispute. An official with the District Rural Development Agency, told TNIE, “Based on repeated complaints, we inspected the building a few days ago and cleaned it fully. A post office is functioning from there now and measures to open the e-Seva centre is also underway.”