Keralam Governance Polity & Governance Science & Technology

The Backbone of 25 years that the Kerala Police has set aside

Background

The Kerala Police has discontinued its 25-year-old Communication Backbone (COB) system. All official communication will now take place through the Internal Administrative Processing System (IAPS) of the Home Department. The platform was designed by the IT Mission for the department. Under the older system the Telecommunications Wing printed out confidential messages passing between offices and heads of offices and then sent them on. Officers log in to the new platform using a username, a password and the employee's Permanent Employee Number (PEN). Each officer has an individual account for sending and receiving official messages, and information on VVIP visits must also go through it. The practice of delivering messages to offices through police personnel from Armed Reserve (AR) camps will also be discontinued. The messengers will now carry only documents and files that require physical transfer, including service books and case diaries.

System discontinued: Communication Backbone Age of the old system: 25-year-old Login identifier: Permanent Employee Number

Why it matters for exams: Departmental platforms, their abbreviations and the employee number used across the State service are asked in State papers.

Kerala PSC

13 November 2026 Source: Mathrubhumi

In plain words

IAPS Internal Administrative Processing System — The platform of the Home Department through which official messages now move.

PEN Permanent Employee Number — The number that identifies a government employee in the State service.

AR camp Armed Reserve camp — A police camp holding the reserve force of a district.