VIJAYAWADA: The Real Time Governance Society (RTGS) of the Andhra Pradesh government won appreciation from Bill Gates, Chairman of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The global technology leader visited the RTGS centre at the State Secretariat on Monday.
During his hour-long stay at the RTGS centre, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu gave a detailed presentation on the functioning of RTGS in rendering civic services using Data Lake, AWARE 2.0, WhatsApp Governance, the Sanjeevani health project and Amaravati capital development.
Bill Gates evinced keen interest and sought details on several subjects.
When the Chief Minister explained the collection of public satisfaction levels on government services through RTGS, Bill Gates appreciated the system and asked about the steps being taken to protect people’s land records.
Chief Minister Naidu said the government is using blockchain technology and QR codes to prevent tampering of land records in the State.
Bill Gates also enquired about the implementation of the Sanjeevani health project in Kuppam constituency with the support of the Gates Foundation.
When Naidu said that the State government maintains the health records of all citizens using AI, Bill Gates appreciated the effort and opined that diagnostic services should be made available to the poor at a low cost.
He also enquired about Amaravati capital development, to which the Chief Minister replied that Amaravati would be developed as a green and blue city.
In a separate meeting with ministers and officials, the Chief Minister said the visit of Bill Gates to Andhra Pradesh would pave the way for a further digital revolution.
Recalling his first meeting with Bill Gates in 1997 as Chief Minister of united Andhra Pradesh and convincing him to set up Microsoft in Hyderabad, Chandrababu Naidu said that since then the Information Technology sector had witnessed rapid growth in Hyderabad.
AI more useful in bringing reforms in education sector: Bill Gates
He said Andhra Pradesh has abundant natural resources and that the government is now focusing on wealth creation.
He added that the Swarnandhra Vision 2047 would become a reality with the cooperation of the Gates Foundation.
During the interaction, Bill Gates appreciated Naidu’s vision and said the Chief Minister is ahead in thinking among global leaders.
He said Indians are at the forefront of the digital revolution and that both the Prime Minister and the Chief Minister are playing key roles. He said the Gates Foundation gives priority to the health sector and has taken up a majority of its projects in health. He stressed the need to provide health services to all.
He appreciated the Sanjeevani health project being implemented in Kuppam with the support of the Gates Foundation. He said AI would be more useful in bringing reforms in the education sector. He lauded the AP government’s efforts in introducing technology in agriculture for the benefit of farmers. He also praised disaster management services that use technology to prevent loss of life and property during natural calamities.
Recalling his association with the Chief Minister, Bill Gates described Chandrababu Naidu as his “good old friend”. He said that while he has been explaining digital governance to the world, Naidu has implemented it on the ground.
Replying to a question from ministers, Bill Gates said that as Naidu promoted IT, a majority of IT experts came from Hyderabad and Microsoft had a large number of experts from the Telugu States.
“In 1997, I first met Mr Bill Gates and presented my vision for IT. What began as a conversation about building a technology ecosystem then has now evolved into a broader mission of using innovation to transform governance and improve lives at scale. Today, at the Secretariat in Amaravati, I presented my vision for Swarna Andhra 2047, where our ministers and secretaries also interacted with him.
We discussed our priority sectors and explored avenues for collaboration with the Gates Foundation to empower our people and enhance their quality of life,” Naidu posted on X.
“Technology must serve humanity. Our Real Time Governance System (RTGS) is transforming lives across Andhra Pradesh — delivering speed in governance and ease of doing business in real time. Grateful for my 1990s meeting with Mr Bill Gates, which inspired this tech-driven citizen empowerment. Delighted to showcase our RTGS centre today, powered by brilliant young minds, alongside flagship initiatives in education, agriculture and health,” Naidu posted.