HETAUDA: A much-awaited Disaster Recovery Centre, a back-up for the Government Integrated Data Centre (GIDC), has finally come into operation in Hetauda.

Minister for Communication and Information Technology Gokul Prasad Baskota inaugurated the centre amid a special programme at Huprachaur in Hetauda Sub Metropolis on Tuesday.

Speaking after inaugurating the centre, Minister Baskota said preparations were underway to construct three other data centres in Kohalpur, Itahari and Kathmandu.

According to Minister Baskota, Nepal has entered into the digital age and the government is poised to leap forward in the technology and communication sectors.

Sunil Paudel, Chief Officer of the Recovery Data Centre said, "The Korean government has already handed over the project to Nepal government and GIDC's Singhdurbar-based data have already been retrieved as back-up in the centre."

The centre will store back-up information of government groupware, national portal, electronic driving licence and vehicle registration, machine-readable passport, national ID, electronic signatures, e-custom services among others.

Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) had provided a support of Rs 370 million for the construction of the centre and would provide necessary training and guidance for the smooth operation of the centre, Paudel shared.