J&K eyes AI to transform governance and citizen services
JAMMU, MAR 9: Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo today held detailed deliberations with stakeholders on the adoption and expansion of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in governance and delivery of public services across Jammu and Kashmir.
The meeting besides the concerned Administrative Secretaries was attended by the Director, Indian Institute of Technology Jammu, CEO, India AI Mission; Special Director General, Bhaskaracharya National Institute for Space Applications and Geo-informatics (BISAG-N), and other concerned officers of the Union Territory.
The meeting held detailed discussions on the potential of AI-based interventions in a range of citizen-centric governance sectors and explored ways to establish a robust institutional and technological framework for accelerating such initiatives in the UT. Participants deliberated on how advanced technologies could improve administrative efficiency, decision-making and accessibility of government services for citizens.
Speaking during the meeting, the Chief Secretary emphasized that Artificial Intelligence offers enormous potential to transform governance and enhance the quality and reach of public services across Jammu and Kashmir. He urged all departments to proactively identify areas where AI-driven solutions could improve efficiency, transparency and outcomes in their respective sectors.
He stressed the importance of strong coordination between the UT administration, the Union Ministry concerned, IIT Jammu, BISAG-N and other technical institutions to ensure timely and effective implementation of all these AI-enabled initiatives.
To provide strategic direction and oversight, the Chief Secretary proposed the constitution of a high-level Steering Committee to be chaired by the Additional Chief Secretary, Public Works Department. The committee would include representatives from IIT Jammu, BISAG-N with Secretary Information Technology and Inspector General of Police Jammu being the members of this committee and would guide the implementation of AI projects while addressing operational bottlenecks.
The Chief Secretary also directed the Information Technology Department to establish a dedicated anchoring mechanism within the department to coordinate AI-related initiatives with different departments. He stressed the need for identifying and deploying specialized human resources to support this institutional framework and ensure effective on-ground implementation.
Highlighting the importance of capacity building, he underscored the need for earlier establishment of a Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Emerging Technologies in Jammu and Kashmir and setting up Data Innovation Labs in skill development institutions. He maintained that such facilities would play a key role in preparing the region for future technological challenges and creating a skilled workforce in data science and AI-related domains.
The Chief Secretary further called upon the School Education Department to explore the possibility of introducing basic introductory courses on Artificial Intelligence at the secondary school level. He also suggested that AI-related skill programmes could be incorporated under Mission YUVA to enable youth to acquire emerging technology skills and improve their employment prospects.
