Online services help desk, Habiganj

About this task

In Habiganj’s tea gardens and haors, people know little of the internet and online services. A table on market day or beside the union council, showing people on their own phones how to check a birth registration, apply for allowances, stipends and jobs, and call 333 for government information, with a one-page guide for each service.

Why it matters

Many government services are now online, but people unused to the internet pay middlemen, and are sometimes cheated. Done once with their own hands, people gain confidence.

What changes after

At least forty people helped; printed guides left at the union council; people know which jobs need no middleman.

Who can join

Anyone patient who knows smartphones and online services well.

What it costs

Getting ready, step by step

• 10 days before

  Visit the union parishad or union digital centre and fix the day and place.

  Ask the entrepreneur which services people ask about most.

• 7 days before

  Write one page per service: where to apply, which papers, the official fee, where no middleman is needed.

  Check website addresses and fees against official sources or the digital centre; write nothing from guesswork.

• 3 days before

  Print the guides; make the banner.

  Go over the rules with the team: never a password, PIN or OTP; never money.

  Spread the word at the market and mosque.

• On the day

  Show on people's own phones, with their own hands doing it.

  For each person helped, note only the type of service, not the name.

• The week after

  Leave the remaining guides at the union parishad and digital centre.

  Add up the totals by service and post an update.

Who does what

• Lead and welcome (1): Seats people, asks what they need, sends them to the right helper, ticks the tally. — ____________
• Application helper (1): Shows applications or checks step by step on people's own phones; they type any password or OTP themselves. — ____________
• Information and guides helper (1): Hands out the right guide, teaches calling 333 for information, refers to the digital centre. — ____________

The day, hour by hour

• 09:30Set table and chairs, banner, guides; charging point.
• 10:00Desk opens; first listen and identify the service.
• 11:00Busiest time; a line and tokens if needed.
• 12:30Breaks in turns; one person always at the table.
• 13:30Last half hour; send those whose work needs the digital centre there.
• 14:00Desk closes; total the tally, photos, leave remaining guides at the council.

What can go wrong, and what to do

• Someone tries to tell you their password, PIN or OTP → Stop them at once: “This is yours alone; tell nobody, not even us.” Let them type it themselves while you look away.
• Someone offers money, or a team member takes it → Decline politely; tell the team beforehand that taking money cancels the task. Any official fee is paid only through the official channel.
• Giving wrong information → If unsure, say so and send them to 333 or the digital centre; never guess.
• Someone's NID or papers ending up on a team phone → Never photograph or keep anyone's papers on your phone; all work on their own phone.

Useful numbers

• 333Government information, services and complaints
• 999National emergency: police, fire, ambulance (free)

Team notes