Using IT to monitor attendance/late coming/absence in government office

Last week I visited my friend in a hi five IT corporate office, it was so pleasing to see how the technology can be used for accountability and transparency, what I saw there was all the doors are automatic locked, one has to swipe the cards to open the door otherwise it won’t, so all the employers have been given a card and whenever a staff swipes to open a door it get recorded and this way we can get to know who and how many times they have passed through this door.

In the similar manner in my previous organization we had these punch cards, as soon as we enter in the morning we have to punch and this will record in the system and after a certain time in morning a report goes to head of organization, with details of all staff arrival time in office. If an employer found to be late immediate explanation is sought from him/her. Accordingly at the end of the month the salary will be provided if the staff has come late more than the given provided times. This has brought out a discipline and accountability and transparency in the organization.

Similarly, I happen to visit the government department and I have found the officer is late and after a while when he arrived on asking why he was late in a general/causal manner he gave silly reasons for late coming when enquired about officer came to know that this is a regular feature of the officer and similar to this there are few in the office who tend to come to office very late, though they have this register where they put the signature. But where is accountability and punishment for late coming. India is having such a high technology surely we can develop a system where all the officers have to punch/swipe card and they have to use it as soon as they enter the office and then again repeat this when they leave the office premise and this record is automatically from all the department has to sent to the higher officials so that he can know who is coming late and who all are missing from the desk, this will at least bring in discipline and accountability in department. I am sure if they are on their desk there are many chances they perform their duty, and the usual complain the government office that there are large number of files pending will also be addressed. So bring in technology to bring in discipline and accountability.