Kerala is moving towards a paperless mode of governance, aiming to have every citizen on digital platforms by December 31, 2026. The plan, announced by the local self-government department, focuses on using artificial intelligence and secure platforms to store documents, manage services, and encourage digital transactions.
The first step is called DEED (Digitisation of Every Essential Document). It will shift birth, residence, income and other certificates into DigiLocker, the government’s digital storage system. The idea is that you may no longer need to carry paper copies if the system works as intended.
Every household will be given a unique ID through the K-SMART programme. The plan is to eventually assign an ID to every individual in the state, linking them to services and benefits by the 2026 deadline.
The government also announced VINIMAYA (Virtual Inclusion Through Novel Initiatives for Monetary Accessibility), a system meant to make digital financial transactions more accessible and secure. This comes as part of the state’s push to make cashless payments more common.
Local Self-Government Minister M B Rajesh said the second phase of digital literacy is meant to make governance available at a tap, with all services eventually accessible through a single app. How smoothly that promise will turn into practice is what remains to be seen.