NTR district’s IGNITE initiative wins SKOCH award

Vijayawada: The IGNITE Cell initiative launched by the NTR district administration has received national recognition with a SKOCH Award for innovation in governance and public service delivery.District Collector Dr G Lakshmisha said the award reflected the collective efforts of Team NTR district and should serve as motivation to pursue innovative interventions aligned with the goals of Swarna Andhra @2047 and Viksit Bharat.The award was recently presented at a ceremony in New Delhi, where District Industries Officer M Madhu received it on behalf of the collector. On Monday, district officials formally handed over the award to Lakshmisha at the Collectorate.Speaking on the occasion, the collector said the district administration had launched the, IGNITE Cell — Information for Growth through Nurturing Income-generating Innovation, Technology and Encouraging Entrepreneurs, as part of efforts to achieve the targets outlined in the state’s long-term development vision.Under the initiative, dedicated IGNITE Cells have been set up at the Collectorate and in the aspirational blocks of Penuganchiprolu and Ibrahimpatnam.

The cells operate on a departmental rotation basis, creating awareness among citizens about various government schemes and programmes.Apart from disseminating information, the centres provide guidance and support related to finance, technology and marketing, while helping resolve queries from beneficiaries. The initiative is also aimed at encouraging entrepreneurship, innovation and ensuring last-mile delivery of welfare and development programmes, he said.Lakshmisha congratulated officials involved in implementing the programme and said such recognition would inspire the administration to work with greater enthusiasm and commitment.Joint Collector Ilakkiya, DRO M Lakshminarasimham and officials from various departments were present.