When the pandemic hit Sri Lanka in 2020, having information available online and obtaining services via online portals was further popularised, increasing efficiency in Government institutes. 

Following its implementation in the face of Covid restraints, the Immigration and Emigration Department and the Department of Registration of Persons continue to use its e-system, having digitised workflows and even delegated data entry work to officials from different departments. 

The online systems have made life easier and resulted in saving time for those who would otherwise be compelled to spend an entire day at the department to get their passports or National Identity Cards via the one-day service. 

Digitisation of Household Registry

imilarly, the State Ministry of Home Affairs under the guidance of the Public Administration, Home Affairs, Provincial Councils, and Local Government Ministry has initiated the digitisation of the Household Registry, which was otherwise maintained in a cupboard at the Grama Niladhari’s office. 

The data collection exercise, which has been in the pipeline since 2016, was launched in 2023 by Grama Niladaris/Development Officers of the Grama Niladhari divisions, with an official appointed by the Divisional Secretariat Office. 

Speaking on the project, State Ministry of Home Affairs Senior Additional Secretary (Divisional Administration Reforms) Muditha Pathmajai explained: “The Household Registry that was maintained by Grama Niladharis under the purview of the State Ministry of Home Affairs has currently been digitised to improve the efficiency of the services provided by the Grama Niladharis. The necessary data is collected by the area Grama Niladhari or an official appointed by the Divisional Secretariat Office of respective administrative divisions. This exercise eliminates the otherwise extensive and laborious task of form filling when one is required to obtain various certificates and letters from Grama Niladharis to fulfil documentation requirements on a routine basis.”

Data protection

 However, last week the public aired concerns on social media about the extensive amount of information that they are required to submit to the Grama Niladhari for the e-Grama Niladhari (eGN) project and questioned how a digitisation effort could be trusted when the data was being collected through printed forms. 

“We are declaring everything we have to the Grama Niladhari through these forms and feel like we have to divulge an extensive amount of information. We have no assurance that the forms will be stored safely and that the data they input will be accurate. If the data is leaked or the files are stolen, then whoever gets their hands on them has all the details about a person, which can lead to fraud and even identity theft,” said Waruna Lasantha, a resident of Waskaduwa. 

Lasantha, speaking to The Sunday Morning, also noted that while the project could benefit and improve efficiency in Local Government institutions and even at Grama Niladhari level, not enough awareness was being created before the data was collected from the people. 

What is the e-Grama Niladhari project?

 Speaking to The Sunday Morning about the eGN project, Prime Minister and Minister of Public Administration, Home Affairs, Provincial Councils, and Local Government Dinesh Gunawardena stated: “Grama Niladharis are the most prominent Government officials that the citizens of this country engage with on a routine basis. Therefore, it is important that we empower the Grama Niladhari with the necessary technological tools to carry out the services in their assigned Grama Niladhari Divisions. As a first step towards that, the ministry has introduced the digitisation programme for Grama Niladhari Divisions under the e-Grama Niladhari project. The pilot commenced from the Kalutara District and data collection is taking place at present.” 

The e-Grama Niladhari project was initiated by the Government to empower the Grama Niladharis with accessibility to Information Technology and the relevant tools to deliver an efficient service.

As a first step, the Grama Niladharis are required to collect extensive data from the residents of their administrative divisions and confirm that they are all residents of the respective Grama Niladhari Divisions.

Protecting personal data

 While it is just the start of a nationally-important project, given the limited awareness among the public and the extensive information being requested, the concerns being raised by many are valid. Therefore, to gain further clarity on how the public can use the existing laws to protect their information, The Sunday Morning spoke to Cyber Security Advisor and Educator Asela Waidyalankara. 

“The Government enacted the Personal Data Protection Act No.9 of 2022, which is well in line with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) of the EU and imposes considerable responsibilities on controllers. This enables the public to hold the authorities accountable for the personal data that is gathered. While the concerns raised by the public are valid, they already have legislative support in case there is a breach of data. Moreover, they can also contact the data protection officer designated by the institution to forward their grievances.” 

Waidyalankara further noted that the data collection could have been done in a more efficient manner, where the Grama Niladhari or the officer collecting data could access a data entry platform to input the details of the residents. 

“Once the data is collected and filled, people should also have access to make edits to the records after informing the local authorities. That way the details can be updated. The local authorities should take the responsibility to create awareness about the project. They should educate the public on how the data that is collected will be of use when accessing services from the Grama Niladhari or Divisional Secretariat. This is a good initiative, but the public needs to be reassured that their data will be stored safely and will only be accessible to authorised personnel,” Waidyalankara concluded.

Data gathering

The first set of forms will record the details of the homeowner and the people living in that household. 

• The ownership of the house
• The location/locality of the house
• The build of the house
• Household infrastructure and other facilities
• Whether the house experienced natural disasters in the last 10 years
• Assessment number for the house
• Duration of residency in the house 

The second set of forms will enable the Grama Niladhari to gather the records of the owners of the house, the family members of the owner that live in the house, and residents who are living on rent/board, as well as the household help. This will enable the Grama Niladhari to identify the permanent and temporary residents of the household.

• The National Identity Card number, passport number, driver’s licence number, fixed telephone number, and email address
• Date of birth
• Religion
• Race
• Marital status
• Educational qualifications
• Vocational qualification
• Employment status (Government, semi-Government, self-employed, or corporate sector employment). Details of the job title and address of the place of work
• The economic background of the residents (bank account details and monthly salary details; if receiving a pension, the pension number)

The third set of forms will provide information on the following: 

• Which public facilities within the Grama Niladhari Division are being accessed and utilised by the residents
• Records about the property and real estate owned by the residents within the Grama Niladhari Division and in other Grama Niladhari Divisions, along with information on whether the residents earn a monthly income from such properties or real estate
• Whether the residents are recipients of Government funding or relief 

All this gathered data will enable the Grama Niladhari to provide efficient services to the citizens and expedite service provisions and certificate issuances via the eGN portal. 

Further information on the project is currently available in video form at the ‘eGramaNiladhari’ (@egramaniladhari) channel on YouTube.