Bhubaneswar: A Tech-Boot Camp on Empowering Governance through AI Capabilities was held today at the Odisha State Centre of National Informatics Centre (NIC), Bhubaneswar. This Workshop on uses of Artificial Intelligence in eGovernance was witnessed by the participation of over 100 senior officers from the Government of Odisha and the Government of India.
In her inaugural address, Anu Garg, Development Commissioner-cum- Additional Chief Secretary, Planning & Convergence and Water Resources Department, Government of Odisha, underscored the transformative role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in strengthening citizen-centric services across the State. She emphasized the potential of AI in simplifying official tasks such as noting, drafting, preparing presentations, and proposal writing, thereby enabling greater efficiency and innovation in governance. Addressing the participants, she also underlined that everyone has a vital role to play in leveraging AI technology for strengthening governance support.
Delivering the keynote, Timothy Dkhar, DDG & State Coordinator, NIC, New Delhi shared his experiences with AI applications and highlighted critical considerations such as legal compliance, privacy safeguards, transparency, and ethical responsibility while deploying AI technologies.
The boot camp covered advanced topics such as Deep Learning, Generative AI, Prompt Engineering, and Context Engineering, along with demonstrations of various AI tools like Napkin, Gamma, and Notebook LM etc. Their pros and cons were discussed in detail, accompanied by live demonstrations on how officers can harness the power of AI to enhance efficiency in day-to-day official tasks and decision-making.
Dr. Ashok Kumar Hota, DDG & SIO, Odisha, welcomed the participants and announced that a series of similar workshops will be conducted in the coming months to further build AI awareness and capacity among government officers. Officers from NIC district centres also joined the session virtually.
On this occasion, a brochure showcasing AI-powered projects and proof-of-concepts (PoCs) developed by NIC was released. The guests also inaugurated the renovated Training Centre of NIC, Odisha, enhancing the state’s digital capacity-building infrastructure. The program concluded with a vote of thanks by Dr.Pabitranand Patnaik, Additional SIO, while Jayanta Kumar Mishra, Head, Training Division, coordinated the day’s proceedings.
