Kerala High Court Raises Concerns Over IT Firm's Capability for Temple Board's Digital Project
The Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) has officially informed the Kerala High Court about its decision to engage Kerala State Information Technology Infrastructure Ltd (KSITIL) as the technical consultant for a major digitisation initiative. This project includes a comprehensive audit of the board's income and the finances of the temples under its management.
Timeline and Process for the Digitisation Effort
TDB's legal counsel provided specific details regarding the planned timeline. Following discussions between TDB and KSITIL, both parties have mutually agreed on a schedule. The request for proposal (RFP) document will be prepared within one month. Subsequently, the bidding process is expected to be finalised within an additional two months.
The board has proposed to complete the entire selection process and award the contract to the successful IT service provider on or before April 30. These submissions were made in direct response to petitions filed in court. The petitions highlighted serious lapses by TDB in conducting timely audits of its income and expenditure.
Court Expresses Doubts About Technical Expertise
However, the bench of Justices V Raja Vijayaraghavan and K V Jayakumar expressed significant reservations. The court stated it was not satisfied that KSITIL possesses the necessary domain expertise for this critical task. The judges questioned whether the firm has demonstrable prior experience and the technical capacity required.
The court emphasised the need for an entity capable of conceptualising, architecting, and preparing an enterprise-grade RFP. This requirement aligns with the nature of the project as contemplated in the High Court's earlier orders.
High Court Orders Virtual Assessment of IT Team
Accordingly, the High Court issued a specific directive. The technical lead responsible for preparing the RFP on behalf of KSITIL must make himself available for a virtual interaction with the court. This session is scheduled for January 28.
The purpose of this interaction is to enable a meaningful assessment of KSITIL's technical competence. The court also aims to evaluate the institutional preparedness and prior experience of both the firm and the specific team assigned to this project. The bench noted that this assessment is crucial given the project's magnitude, sensitivity, and significant public importance.
Background of Court's Previous Directives
This development follows a previous hearing in October where the High Court had strongly criticised the TDB. The court had faulted the board for its failure to conduct financial audits promptly. During that hearing, the bench had also directed the board to immediately transition to a fully digitised, end-to-end accounting framework to ensure transparency and efficiency in managing temple finances.
