A STUDY ON PAPERLESS SURVEYS: A GENERIC MOBILE APP FOR RESEARCH PROJECTS OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT DATA COLLECTION

Rama Krishna Thotapally

Volume : VI, Issue : V, May - 2017

A STUDY ON PAPERLESS SURVEYS: A GENERIC MOBILE APP FOR RESEARCH PROJECTS OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT DATA COLLECTION

Rama Krishna Thotapally

Abstract :

Information and communication technology (ICT) tools�hardware such as mobile phones, tablets and software applications such as Skype�are all around us: from the simple programme in our alarm clock to tablets and personal computers. Today, even orchards are managed by programmes that predict yields based on rainfall. ICT tools have revolutionised the way we work, especially how we deal with the mountains of data that accompany large–scale development projects. Today, there are more than 900 million mobile phones in India and even the poorest households have mobile access. Data collection for monitoring and evaluation (M&E) takes a great deal of time, staff hours and resources. When seeking to measure and compare the impact of interventions, quantitative data are very useful for providing hard evidence and demonstrating trends. Surveys are the most often chosen tool to collect these data. The idea was to try to simplify this massive undertaking by administering the surveys digitally, which allows for collection and processing of data in real time, while the survey was being conducted. The developed software application eliminated some of the conventional limitations associated with remote data collection and M&E but also introduced new challenges (e.g., no physical paper proof of the survey).