Meet Udyamo ERPLite — Your Digital Office

Meera arrived at the office on Monday morning and found Negi Bhaiya sitting in front of a computer screen, typing fast. Numbers were flying across the screen. Meera had spent the last few weeks learning accounting on paper — journals, ledgers, trial balance. But this looked different. This looked... fast.

"Negi Bhaiya, what software is that?" she asked.

Negi Bhaiya grinned. "This is Udyamo ERPLite. Everything you have been doing by hand? This software does it in seconds. Come, sit down. Today you learn the computer way."

What is ERP?

Let us start with a simple question. What does ERP mean?

ERP stands for Enterprise Resource Planning.

That sounds complicated. Let us break it down.

• Enterprise = a business or organization
• Resource = money, people, stock, machines — everything a business uses
• Planning = organizing and managing all of it

So ERP is one software that manages everything in a business — accounting, inventory, sales, purchases, salaries, taxes, reports.

Think of it like this. Rawat Aunty runs her kirana shop. She has:

• A notebook for daily sales
• A separate notebook for purchases
• A diary to track who owes her money
• Loose papers for GST bills
• A calculator for totals

That is five different places for five different things. What if she forgets to update one notebook? What if the numbers don't match?

Now imagine one single system where all of this lives together. When she makes a sale, the stock goes down automatically. The GST is calculated automatically. The customer's balance is updated automatically. The profit report changes automatically.

That is what ERP does.

Why Udyamo ERPLite?

There are many ERP software programs in the market. Tally, Zoho Books, Busy, QuickBooks — you may have heard of some of these.

Udyamo ERPLite is designed for Indian businesses. It follows Indian accounting standards. It understands GST. It follows Schedule III of the Companies Act (the standard chart of accounts we studied in the previous chapter).

Sharma Sir uses ERPLite in his practice for multiple clients. "Once you learn one good ERP," he told Meera, "you can pick up any other software quickly. The logic is the same everywhere."

Here is what ERPLite can do:

Don't worry if this list looks long. We will cover each one, step by step, in this chapter and the chapters ahead.

First Look — Logging In

Negi Bhaiya opened the browser on the computer. "ERPLite runs in your web browser," he explained. "You don't need to install anything heavy. Just open Chrome or Firefox, type the address, and log in."

Step 1: Open ERPLite

Negi Bhaiya typed the ERPLite address into the browser. The login screen appeared.

Step 2: Enter Your Credentials

Every user gets a username and password. Sharma Sir had created a login for Meera.

• Username: meera@sharmaassociates
• Password: (given by Sharma Sir)

"Never share your password," Negi Bhaiya said. "Every action you take in the software is logged under your name. If something goes wrong, they can check who did it."

Step 3: The Dashboard

After logging in, Meera saw the Dashboard. This is the home screen of ERPLite — the first thing you see every time you log in.

The dashboard showed several things at a glance:

• Cash Balance — how much cash the business has right now
• Bank Balance — how much is in the bank account
• Receivables — how much customers owe us
• Payables — how much we owe to suppliers
• Recent Transactions — the last few entries made

"Think of the dashboard like the front page of a newspaper," Negi Bhaiya said. "It gives you the headlines. If you want the full story, you go inside."

Navigating ERPLite — The Main Menu

On the left side of the screen, Meera saw a menu. This is the main navigation — the way you move around the software.

The menu has four main sections:

1. Masters

This is where you set up the foundation data — the things that don't change every day.

• Items — products and services you sell or buy
• Customers — people who buy from you
• Vendors — people you buy from
• Employees — people who work for you
• Chart of Accounts — the list of all account heads

Think of Masters like building the foundation of a house. You do it once, carefully. Then you build everything else on top.

2. Transactions

This is where the daily work happens.

• Voucher Entry — Journal, Receipt, Payment, Contra
• Sales — Proforma Invoice, Sales Order, Sales Invoice, Payment Receipt
• Purchase — Purchase Order, Purchase Bill, Payment

Every time money moves — in or out — you record it here.

3. Reports

This is where you see the results of all your entries.

• Trial Balance
• Profit & Loss Statement
• Balance Sheet
• Cash Flow Statement
• Day Book
• Sales Register
• Purchase Register
• Aged Receivables
• Aged Payables

"Reports are the whole point," Sharma Sir always said. "We do all this entry work so that at the end, the owner can see — am I making money or losing money?"

4. Settings

This is where you configure the software.

• Organization details (company name, address, GSTIN, PAN)
• Financial Year
• User management (who can log in, what they can access)
• Tax settings
• Number series (how vouchers are numbered)

You set this up once. After that, you rarely touch it.

Setting Up the Organization

"Before you can do anything," Negi Bhaiya said, "you have to tell the software WHO you are. Which company? What is the GSTIN? What financial year?"

This is called Organization Setup. It is the very first thing you do when you start using ERPLite for a new business.

Sharma Sir came over. "Let us practice. Set up my practice — Sharma & Associates — as a test."

Step 1: Go to Settings → Organization

Meera clicked on Settings in the left menu, then clicked Organization.

Step 2: Fill in the Details

A form appeared with several fields. Let us go through each one.

Company Name: This is the legal name of the business.

Meera typed: Sharma & Associates

Address: The registered address of the business.

Meera typed:

• Near SBI Branch, Haldwani
• District: Nainital
• State: Uttarakhand
• PIN: 263139

GSTIN: The 15-digit GST Identification Number.

"Every GST-registered business has a GSTIN," Negi Bhaiya explained. "It starts with the state code. Uttarakhand's code is 05."

Meera typed: 05AABCS1234A1Z5

"This is a sample number," Sharma Sir said. "In real life, you get your GSTIN from the government when you register for GST."

Let us understand the GSTIN format:

PAN: The Permanent Account Number (10 characters).

Meera typed: AABCS1234A

Notice that the PAN is embedded inside the GSTIN. Characters 3 to 12 of the GSTIN are the PAN.

Financial Year: The 12-month period for which you keep accounts.

In India, the financial year runs from 1st April to 31st March.

Meera selected:

• Start Date: 01-04-2025
• End Date: 31-03-2026

Currency: Indian Rupees (INR). This is the default.

Contact Details:

• Phone: 05946-XXXXXX
• Email: [email protected]

Step 3: Save

Meera clicked the Save button. A green message appeared: "Organization details saved successfully."

"That's it?" Meera asked, surprised.

"That's it," Negi Bhaiya smiled. "Now the software knows who we are. Every invoice, every report, every document will carry these details automatically."

Understanding the Financial Year

Sharma Sir noticed Meera looking confused about the financial year. He sat down to explain.

"Meera, think of it like the school year. School starts in April and ends in March, right? The financial year is the same. Every business in India starts its accounting year on 1st April and ends on 31st March."

"Why not January to December?" Meera asked.

"Because the government decided so," Sharma Sir said with a laugh. "The Income Tax Act says the financial year is April to March. So all businesses follow that. When you set up ERPLite, you tell it which financial year you are working in. All transactions you enter must fall within that year."

Important rule: If you are working in FY 2025-26, you can only enter transactions dated between 1st April 2025 and 31st March 2026. If you try to enter a transaction dated 15th April 2026, the software will not allow it — that belongs to FY 2026-27.

The Draft → Post Workflow

Before they finished for the day, Negi Bhaiya showed Meera one more important concept.

"In ERPLite, when you enter any transaction — a voucher, an invoice, anything — it first goes into Draft mode."

"What does that mean?" Meera asked.

"Draft means it is saved but not final. Think of it like writing a letter in pencil first. You can erase, change, correct. Once you are happy with it, you write it in pen. That is Posting."

Here is how it works:

"Why not just post everything directly?" Meera asked.

"Because mistakes happen," Negi Bhaiya said. "Imagine you enter an invoice for Rs. 50,000 but the correct amount is Rs. 5,000. If it posts immediately, the accounts are wrong. With drafts, you — or Sharma Sir — can review the entry before it becomes final."

In some offices, the workflow is even more structured:

1. Junior accountant (like Meera) creates the entry → it goes to Draft
2. Senior accountant (like Negi Bhaiya) reviews it → approves it
3. The entry is Posted → accounts are updated

This is called the approval process. It makes sure no entry goes into the books without being checked.

"For now," Sharma Sir said, "you will create entries in Draft. Negi Bhaiya will review them. Once he approves, they get posted. This way, you can learn without worrying about making permanent mistakes."

Meera felt relieved. A safety net while she learned.

What Meera Set Up Today

Let us list everything Meera did in this first session with ERPLite:

1. Logged in to ERPLite using her username and password
2. Explored the dashboard — saw Cash Balance, Receivables, Payables at a glance
3. Navigated the menu — understood the four sections: Masters, Transactions, Reports, Settings
4. Set up the Organization — entered company name, address, GSTIN, PAN, financial year
5. Understood the Draft → Post workflow — entries are reviewed before they become final

Not bad for a first day on the computer!

Quick Recap

• ERP stands for Enterprise Resource Planning — one software to manage all business operations
• Udyamo ERPLite is an Indian ERP software that supports GST, Schedule III Chart of Accounts, and the full accounting cycle
• The Dashboard is your home screen — it shows key numbers at a glance
• The Main Menu has four sections: Masters (foundation data), Transactions (daily entries), Reports (results), Settings (configuration)
• Organization Setup is the first step — enter company name, GSTIN, PAN, address, and financial year
• GSTIN is a 15-digit number that includes the state code and PAN
• The Financial Year in India runs from 1st April to 31st March
• The Draft → Post workflow lets you review entries before they become final
• Approval process means a senior person checks the entry before it is posted

Practice Exercise — Try This Yourself

You are setting up ERPLite for a new client. Here are the details:

Business Name: Kumaon Fresh Fruits Owner: Pankaj Mehta Address: Main Market, Ranikhet, District Almora, Uttarakhand - 263645 GSTIN: 05BMPPM5678B1Z3 PAN: BMPPM5678B Financial Year: 2025-26 Phone: 05966-XXXXXX Email: [email protected]

Tasks:

1. Write down the state code from the GSTIN. What state does it belong to?
2. Extract the PAN from the GSTIN. Verify it matches the PAN given above.
3. What are the start and end dates of FY 2025-26?
4. If Pankaj gives you a bill dated 5th April 2026, can you enter it in FY 2025-26? Why or why not?
5. List the four main sections of the ERPLite menu and write one thing you would find in each.

Bonus: If you have access to ERPLite, log in and set up this organization. Take a screenshot of the completed organization form.

Fun Fact

Did you know? The word "computer" originally meant a person — not a machine! In the early 1900s, "computers" were people (often women) who sat at desks and did calculations by hand. The first electronic computers were built to do these calculations faster. So when you use ERPLite, you are doing the same job that rooms full of people used to do — but you are doing it alone, in minutes. That is the power of technology. Meera from Bageshwar, sitting in Haldwani, using software built in India, managing accounts for businesses across Uttarakhand. Not bad at all.