Akhilesh Srivastava- The Man Behind the Expansion of IT-Footprint in Indian Highway Operations

Science and Technology plays a vital role in shaping the world into a better place to live. The role of Information Technology (IT) in waging a war against the persistent problems is undeniably great. The devices powered by the IT and digital technologies have been conquering the complex situations to bring them under the control. The government of India recognised their importance long back and introduced plans like National e-governance plan in 2006. Again, in 2015, a program named ‘Digital India’ with a motto "to digitally empower India" was also launched. Many other government departments and ministries have taken a cue and came up with many IT-based citizen-centric services. The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has started imbibing tech-tools in its operations and initiatives. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) through its operations division, which is headed by Mr Akhilesh Srivastava, has been implementing a slew of tech-based initiatives and programs.

Under the guidance of Mr Akhilesh Srivastava, the Highway operations division has been executing prestigious projects like FASTag, Traffic Incident Management System, RAMS, and so forth. Mr Srivastava, who is known for his Tech-savvy nature, has induced many IT-powered changes in the Highways sector.

FASTag

Also called as Electronic Toll Collection (ETC) system, the FASTag system is letting in efficiency and accountability in the highway operations. FASTag is a unique Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) Tag, which needs to be linked to a bank account or wallet to make it function effectively.

When a FASTagged vehicle passes through an Electronic Toll plaza, then the RFID sensors would detect the vehicle and identify the FASTag to report to the system. The system would deduct the Toll charge from the linked account without any human intervention. FASTag Toll collection system is helping the NHAI in curbing the congestion at the Toll Plazas, thus making journeys seamless on the national highways.

RAMS

Road Asset Management System (RAMS) is first of its kind in India. Mr Akhilesh Srivastava has been one of the instrumental persons in coordinating this project. The NHAI has also made a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to leverage spatial technologies in extracting the data pertaining to the national highways.

The data would be used for effective utilisation of resources, which are abiding the national highways. And also, the data would be put to use in the planning and implementation of the current and future projects.

Traffic Incident Management System

Mr Akhilesh Srivastava has been one of the key persons involved in implementing the Traffic Incident Management system, which is powered by GPS technology and Sukhad Yatra App. Through this system, the victim or any other commuter can report emergencies via Toll-free number- 1033 or Sukhad Yatra App, so that the concerned authorities would act on it. The ground level authorities would be provided with appropriate machinery and vehicles to reach the accident spot within 15 Minutes from reporting the incident. The entire process would be tracked through the GPS-aided system, which makes the authorities responsible or accountable for their actions.

#AkhileshSrivastava #Highways #RAMS #FASTag

#TrafficIncidentManagementSystem #ITexpertIndianBureaucrat

Harish Bandla is recently graduated from Savitribai Phule Pune University with a degree in marketing and Finance, his interests also include book reading, article writing. You can find him on LinkedIn and G+ as Harish32.