Puttaparthi: Sri Sathya Sai District Collector T.S. Chetan has stressed the need for a widespread awareness campaign to promote the use of WhatsApp Governance among the public. Speaking at the PGRS meeting hall in the District Collectorate on Wednesday, the Collector unveiled a wall poster encouraging citizens to engage with WhatsApp-based services.

The Collector announced that from 15 April, a door-to-door “Mana Mitra” campaign has been launched to ensure that every citizen saves the WhatsApp Governance number — 95523 00009 — on their mobile phones. He stated that the Andhra Pradesh government, under the Mana Mitra initiative, has introduced WhatsApp Governance to improve access to government services.

“Currently, 210 services are available through WhatsApp Governance. Within a week, this will increase to 250, and in 15 days, citizens will be able to access 350 services,” said Collector Chetan. He added that the government’s long-term aim is to offer up to 1,000 different services via the platform. The Collector also stated that essential documents such as certificates will be delivered through WhatsApp. Citizens can link their Aadhaar and access verified digital certificates without having to visit any government office. These certificates are legally valid and can be instantly verified using QR codes.

He reiterated that officials must accept digital certificates presented via WhatsApp and should not demand physical copies. Stressing the legitimacy of digital documentation, Collector Chetan urged government departments to stop requesting hard copies when valid digital certificates are provided by citizens.

Additionally, senior official Bhaskar Katamneni has directed all district collectors to ensure an intensive awareness drive and public education campaign about the WhatsApp Governance number across districts and field-level offices. Information should also be provided to visitors at government offices on how to use and benefit from the Mana Mitra WhatsApp services. Officials and stakeholders from various departments attended the session.