The extensive use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has changed the fundamental principal of delivery of services in every aspect of life, including various functions of the government. This has resulted in increasing efficiency, creating transparency, and streamlining expenses in the government Organizations. Today, Electronic Governance (popularly referred as e-governance) has emerged as a keyword for all such IT applications that are deployed by government bodies to deliver solutions and information to the masses. Generally, e-governance is considered as "online government"; however, many non-Internet technologies like telephone, fax, SMS, wireless networks and services, CCTVs, tracking systems, biometric identification, road traffic management and enforcement, identity cards, smart cards, etc., can be used in this context.
E-Governance: An outlook
In its nascent avatar, e-Governance was meant merely to have an online presence through a web portal to disseminate information for the benefit of the masses. Today, e-Governance in India has drastically evolved and it captures the granular objectives of the governance, such as citizen centricity, service orientation and transparency. Lessons from previous e-Governance initiatives have played an important role in shaping the progressive e-Governance strategy of India currently. In fact, the Indian government has introduced a full-fledged programme called – National e-Governance Programme, that takes a holistic view of e-governance initiatives across the country and helps improve public service delivery.
The long-term benefits that evolve out of deploying ICT solutions are better decision making abilities for the govt organizations, and reduction in overall operational expenditure over a period of time. E-Governance ushers in multiple benefits for the govt and the masses by strengthening the very fabric of democracy and ensuring greater citizen participation at all levels of governance. It leads to automation of services, making sure that information regarding every work of public welfare is easily available to all citizens and eliminates corruption by adding lot more transparency in the governments functioning.
The deployment of E-Governance initiatives in the country promises a more citizen-centric government, however most initiatives are at a nascent stage and therefore the need of the hour is to ensure that the outcomes are effectiveness-driven and not efficiency driven.
For instance, offering subsidized notebooks or tablets to educational institutions is the first step towards evangelizing e-literacy; what would however, drive the growth of e-literacy, would be the development of software in regional languages so that students can interact with the computing devices in their preferred regional language. With respect to this trend, Lenovo launched Matrubhasha: a vernacular computing initiative that empowers school children to gain computer proficiency through their mother tongue, without depending on English. Considering that the rural areas are not as well tuned in to the Internet as compared to the metros, the government could work in tandem with telecom providers to facilitate the penetration of Internet through 2G and 3G solutions.
Enabling transparency and efficiency
A successful e-governance initiative by definition demands the least amount of human intervention, with system-driven, rather than by individual-driven processes. This would not only enhance the productivity but also maintain transparency and respect for the system. Perhaps the best promise that e-government entails, is the orientation and efficiency of the private sector, combined with the accountability of the public sector. The incorporation of ICT solutions will increase the accountability of any solution or service offered by the organization and this is often the first step in creating a positive image for any institution.
Take for instance, the example of the E-Choupal initiative by ITC. Experts opine that it is one of the the best case studies for adoption of ICT solutions in a project, which links the business objective of a corporate house with a larger societal cause. Deployed by ITC Limited certain state government, the project aims to work with farmers to buy products for exports, by connecting with rural farmers directly via internet kiosks set up by the tobacco giant. The ICT platform facilitated the flow of information and knowledge to market transactions in real time, and the initiative empowered the lives of millions of farmers. Not only does the initiative turn the entire venture into a highly profitable social cause, but it also highlighted the company’s ability to tap technology solutions as a driver for growth.
UIDAI project is another example of a remarkable achievement in an e-governance initiative. Acclaimed as the world’s largest data management project, with some of the finest minds in the world, from academic institutions, the private sector, and hand-picked candidates from the government, entrepreneurs who can build business applications around the UID number, making it into a viable, self sustaining model.
Final words
Due to increasing population, current manual mechanisms will simply not be able to handle the volume of requirements, unless the systems and processes are transferred to an electronic medium. The way forward for e-governance would be to strategize the choice of applications, assess the impact of the solutions on the masses, sensitize the policy makers to focus on good governance, and finally, build capacity to accommodate future needs by anticipating demands from the system and the masses.
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Rahul Agarwal
Quelle/Source: InformationWeek India, 28.05.2013
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