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Union fertilizers minister J P Nadda on Thursday inaugurated an integrated e-bill system aimed at digitally processing fertilizer subsidies of about Rs 2 lakh crore. The move replaces manual, paper-based procedures with a fully digital workflow, eliminating the physical movement of bills, an official statement said.”This online system will play a significant role in strengthening transparent, efficient and technology-driven governance,” Nadda said at the launch event, as cited by PTI. The initiative is a key outcome of a technological collaboration between the Department of Fertilizers’ Integrated Financial Management System (iFMS) and the Public Financial Management System (PFMS) of the controller general of accounts under the ministry of finance.The transformation “significantly enhances transparency and accountability by creating a centralised and tamper-proof digital audit trail for all financial transactions, thereby facilitating easier monitoring and audits,” said CGA Santosh Kumar. The e-bill platform allows fertilizer companies to submit subsidy claims online and monitor payment status in real time, removing the need for physical visits and manual follow-ups. It introduces a standardised electronic workflow, including first-in-first-out bill processing, to ensure consistency and adherence to financial rules.The system offers real-time oversight of expenditure and stronger financial controls, with all payments tracked and reported through a central platform.Manoj Sethi, joint secretary in the fertilizers ministry, said the system “enables end-to-end digital bill processing, which will significantly accelerate payment timelines, including timely release of weekly fertilizer subsidy payments”.The system also incorporates robust internal controls that validate payments against predefined criteria, record every action for audit purposes, and help reduce the risk of fraud.The event was attended by additional secretaries Aneeta C Meshram and Aparna Sharma, joint secretaries K K Pathak and Anurag Rohatagi, and director Laboni Das Datta.Senior Technical Director Aseem Gupta of the National Informatics Centre (NIC) outlined the technical features and architecture of the system. The implementation and demonstration were supported by the NIC team, including joint director Ashutosh Tiwari and developer Harekrishna Tiwari, whose efforts in building and rolling out the platform were widely appreciated.