Scanning of old documents and development of document

Scanning of old documents and development of document management system for the retrieval of data IGR & CSR, West Bengal 11 -January-2013

Search & Inspection – present flow 1 Citizen comes to Office and submit duly filled application form defined for the purpose. 2 Citizen pays the requisite fees. 3 Index Registers are provided to them for searching. 4 Book volume Registers are provided to them for Inspection. 5 Advocate issues certificate on the basis of the result of such searching and inspection. 2

Digitization of old records Objectives 1 Preservation and archival of old records. (As per section 51 and 55 of The Registration Act 1908 read with Rule 11 of WB Registration Rules, 1962) 2 Easier search and retrieval facility of old records 3 Rationalize storage space Alternate methods of data digitization 1 2 3 Contact/non-contact Scanning Digital photography 3 Metadata creation by manual data entry

Difficulty in scanning and photography 1 Old bound volumes (of average page size 1 ft X 1. 5 ft) need to be unbound even for non-contact scanning (with book scanners) or digital photography. 2 Cost of these two methods are estimated to be very high. 3 Both scanning and photography are time consuming methods. 4 Very old pages have turned brittle; physical handling should be minimized. 5 Rebinding of unbound volumes may hardly be possible. 4 6 Even in case of scanning, metadata is to be created to facilitate searching and copying

Chosen method: Meta data creation Methodology A B Data is captured in three logical sections i. Deed details (Book volume register) ii. Personal details (Index 1) iii. Property details (Index 2) C Book volume registers and index registers, as available, are used as source of data. (Ref: Section 55 of The Registration Act, 1908). D 5 Data captured by manual data entry in English or vernacular language, as available, using a custom built software. Back end data base is designed as per the end use requirement of CORD (Computerization of Registration of Documents) software developed and maintained by NIC, West Bengal.

Agency’s scope in data capturing Core deliverables by the agency 1 2 Maintaining quality of data by adopting double entry method. 3 Printed checklist, if required, for departmental approval and archival of data. 4 6 Capturing data from Book Volume/ Index Registers (from year 1996 to 2007 in 1 st phase, and prior to 1996, but upto 1980 in 2 nd phase) by manual data entry in 240 Registration Offices in 19 districts. District wise and year wise validated database to be delivered in DVD. In double entry method same data is entered twice by two different operators. During the 2 nd entry mismatch with 1 st entry is automatically detected and alerted.

Agency’s related responsibilities 1 2 Deployment of hardware and software in data entry centers (DECs) across the state. 3 Building up data entry centers in space provided in registration offices. 4 Deployment of trained manpower required for completing the work in scheduled time. 5 7 Developing and maintaining custom built software system for digitization and management of deeds. Project management activities to plan, execute and monitor the progress of the project.

Proof of Concept (POC) Pilot project was executed in District Registrar’s Office at Alipore and Addl. District Sub-Registrar’s Office at Diamond Harbour on 155 Book Volume/ Index Registers. Details of data captured and delivered to NIC are as follows. Site Number of Deeds Number of personal details (Index 1) (A) Number of property details (Index 2) (B) Total records (A+B) Approximate man-hour spent Alipore 4163 15034 7871 22905 720 Diamondharbor 4800 16240 12858 29098 720 Few statistics 1. Average number of records (index 1 + index 2) per deed 2. Average output (number of deeds) per operator attained in 8 hour shift 8 6 35 3. Maximum output (number of deeds) per operator attained in 8 hour shift 70

Learning from POC Observation Learning 1 Legibility of hand written content is a challenge Data entry operators(DEO) to be trained to read hand written content. DEOs will be sensitized about the accuracy with which the content to be read. Domain experts(retired persons from registration offices) to be aligned with the data entry teams for better understanding of source contents. 9 2 Sometimes availability of Book Volume/ Index Registers becomes a limiting issue. Fee Book may be consulted in such a scenario.

Learning from POC Observation (continued) Learning 3 Mouza - Police station mapping do Mapping to be done in advance not always tally with NIC master data. 4 Present Police Stations may not tally with Police Stations in previous years due to creation of new police stations and also reorganization of police stations. 10 Mapping to be done in advance POC process flow and observations will be detailed in the Process guide, to be prepared by the agency for approval of government.

Deed digitization software - Morut: The Software System developed for digitization and management of digitized deeds, featuring a gamut of tailored modules to manage deeds. 11

Basic features of Morut l l l 12 Double Entry system to ensure maximum possible quality and integrity of the data. Field level alerts for mismatched entries will be shown to the user. How it works Strong encryption of records to ensure security and avoid tampering. Full audit trail and audit trail management. Plug-in with B’zer, integrated document management system. (Can be plugged in, if volume registers of some of the years are found to be fit for scanning and planned to scan) Optimized checklist printing for different types of printers (Dot Matrix, Laser jet etc. )

Data Capturing screens 1 ails et eed d D 2 3 Index 1 x 2 Inde 13

Output from the software Index 1 14 Index 2 Text files of Index 1 and Index 2 can be generated from the database by indicating year and book volume number.

Data Entry Centre (DEC) Process flow Inward Physical Volume Control Sheet Initiation Data Entry Quality Check ing rint st p k li hec Checklist Printing h. C Wit Outward Physical Volume Re-work/ Correction Delivery of District/Year Wise Data Departmental QC UAT sign off 15 Exception Handling Final List Print

Data Entry Centre (DEC) Process flow Inward Physical Volume Control Sheet Initiation Outward Physical Volume Delivery of District/Year Wise Data Entry (New) With Data Entry 2 nd Time ntry ble e dou Departmental QC UAT sign off 16 Exception Handling Final List Print

Quality Assurance plan 1 2 Quality check will be two fold – logical check and checking by comparing data with volumes. 3 In consultation with NIC, double entry method has been adopted in data capturing for attaining high quality of data. Facility of checklist printing, built up in the software can also be used as audit and approval purpose. 4 17 Agency’s quality team will check entries from each volumes before submitting it for departmental quality check Domain experts, preferably retired persons from registration offices will be consulted and aligned with the data entry team for better understanding of handwritten content on old documents.

Responsibility Matrix 1 Infrastructure Department Accept Provide Electricity connection in DEC Accept Provide Backup power (generator/ UPS) Provide - Activity Agency Department Making index registers available in DEC Accept Provide Submission of data for quality check. Provide Accept Quality assurance, Error Correction 18 Agency Space for DEC 2 Activity Provide Validate User Acceptance clearance Accept Provide Production

Risk and contingency plan for DEC production SL Risks and Contingencies 1 Non availability of physical volumes in DEC. 2 Slow progress in user acceptance check on submitted work. Mitigation plan Strong project coordination and monitoring at DEC/district/state level. 3 4 19 Performance of any DEO might be Arrangement for retraining and unsatisfactory in terms of output or quick replacement will be there quality. throughout the life cycle of the project. Hardware deployed in DEC may go Standby hardware will be kept to faulty. keep downtime at the minimum.

Resource deployment plan for each DEC Sl. No. 1 2 3 4 20 Role Key Skills Technical supervisor a. Hardware and networking b. Troubleshooting DEC In charge a. Process b. Training c. Team leading Quality supervisor/ a. Data capturing master trainers b. Reading in local language Data entry operator a. Data capturing b. Reading in local language Experience in years 1+ 2+ 1+ 1+

Time and cost for 1 st phase Assumption Completion Schedule (Estimated) Approximately 1 calendar year. Estimated Cost 21 1. Average number of deeds per year per office is 5000. 2. Each data entry center will be 12 seater in approx 300 sq. ft space. Rs. 10 to 16 Lakhs per office at rate of Rs. 4 per record depending on number of records per deed. (5000 deeds per office per year X 12 years X 6 records per deed X Rs. 4 per record =16 Lakhs)

Analysis of adopted method for digitization Benefits Short comings 1 Online searching facility to the public 1 Citizen, still has to come to office to get certified copy. 2 Authentication of such searching upon payment of requisite fees online 3 Easy maintenance of index registers in soft form 22 2 Maintenance of bound Volume Registers can not be avoided. 3 Storage space requirement can not be avoided.

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