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“A number of steps have been taken to deepen back-end digitization across government departments. Process re-engineering is underway in several departments to modernize legacy workflows and foster integration with digital platforms. Through the Data Exchange project, better data integration is being achieved.
“We are working to make the systems interoperable by using open APIs which facilitate seamless communication between the systems in various departments. The upskilling of the government officers & employees to ensure that they have the capacity to manage and operate the backend systems is a continuous process.”
This was stated by Sanket S Bhondve, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology, Government of India, in conversation with Anoop Verma, Editor-News, ETGovernment. In the interview that follows, Sanket S Bhondve sheds light on the impact of various e-governance initiatives of the government.
Edited excerpts:
Spearheaded by the Central and several state governments, e-governance became a major reform movement in the early years of the 21st century. How do you see the progress that India has made in the area of e-governance in the last 25 years?
India has leapfrogged and made progress in sectors like UPI, BS-6 and DPIs due to constant innovations in technology and the digital ecosystem. E-governance is an old terminology today, digital governance is the key to all challenges with a whole of government approach. The progress that the country has made in the area of digital governance is remarkable. The National e-Governance Plan (NeGP), the Digital India campaign and other initiatives of the government have played a seminal role in the development of institutions and systems for providing seamless, inclusive and cost-effective online services to the people.
Digital governance initiatives garner particular relevance for India, since we have been able to leverage them to close the digital divide leading to enhancement in financial inclusion. In this regard, the success and international acclaim that our premium Digital Public Infrastructures like, Unified Payment Interface (UPI), Digilocker, Aadhar, FASTAG have played is well known. Due to the digital governance initiatives, a phenomenal degree of efficiency and transparency has been achieved in the functioning of government departments. It would not be an exaggeration to say that digital governance has brought a paradigm shift in the structure of the governance in the country.There is no doubt that e-governance has brought a seachange in the functioning of the government departments. What are the landmark initiatives through which e-governance has progressed in this country?
The first landmark step that comes to the mind is Aadhaar, which has revolutionized identity authentication and has enabled efficient service delivery. Then there are the digital platforms for fostering seamless citizen engagement: UMANG, DigiLocker, GEM and MyGov. Mention must be made of the PM Gati Shakti platform launched by our Prime Minister. This is a national master Plan for multi-modal connectivity. It brings 16 ministries, including railways and roads, together, for integrated planning and coordinated implementation of infrastructure connectivity projects.
“>The systems of e-courts and e-taxation have brought transparency and accountability to the functioning of the judiciary and the payment of taxes. In the rural areas, governance has been revolutionized through the e-panchayat system. The adoption of e-office has brought paperless governance to all government departments. Another important initiative is the Common Service Centers (CSCs), which have ensured grassroot level service delivery via the 5.8 lakh Village Level Entrepreneurs (VLEs). The language barrier is being bridged through BHASHINI, which is a translation tool.
The Ministry of Electronics & IT is coming up with its own indigenously designed and developed platforms like Appstore, Intranet, Document Management system (Collab files), email, browser, single sign on and others. India is pioneering the proliferation of digital governance initiatives in other countries–this speaks volumes about our technological prowess.
In the last 10 years, due to the growing popularity of mobile phones, communication systems, people and businesses have become used to getting work in various government departments done through online systems. Now, e-governance is something that all of us take for granted—we expect all government services to be available in online mode. How is the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY) working to fulfill the growing aspirations of people and businesses in the country for online services?
Digital and communication technologies are constantly evolving and getting better. The consumers in India are tech savvy, they are constantly upgrading their devices, and they expect better online services. In face of these facts, the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology has to continuously work to meet the growing demand for online services. Through platforms like UMANG, DigiLocker, and Jan Dhan-Aadhaar-Mobile (JAM) trinity the portfolio of digital governance services have been expanded to a vast degree. There is implementation of Single Sign-On (SSO) and multilingual interfaces to enhance usability. AI and automation are being brought in to improve service delivery time and accuracy.
Considering the vast diversity of India, we have made an endeavour through the BHASHINI platform to provide content in 22 scheduled languages of India. This also helps in connecting closely with Indian citizens on different regional spectrums. For providing access to quality healthcare to all sections of society, the National Telemedicine Service of India (eSanjeevani) initiative has been launched. eSanjeevani facilitates quick and easy access to doctors and medical specialists through digital devices like smartphones. This is a step towards digital health equity to achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC).
MeitY is also focused on enhancing infrastructure through BharatNet, enabling high-speed broadband in rural & remotest part of India. With more than 5.8 lakh Common Service Centres (CSCs) spread across the length and breadth of our country, e-initiatives have been taken to all parts of the country.
The rise of AI and other emerging technologies has brought another dimension to e-governance, which is now transforming into AI-governance. What steps is MeitY taking to deploy AI and other emerging technology systems to provide a higher level of online services to the people and businesses?
Leveraging emerging technologies to redefine e-governance is a continuous process since these technologies are evolving at a fast pace. MeitY is at the forefront of using AI and other emerging technologies for providing better online services to the people. In the grievance redressal system called CPGRAMS and other facilities for enabling queries by citizens, AI driven systems are being used. Blockchain is being used for land records, supply chain management and secure data sharing.
The government has also come out with a National AI Mission for enabling the responsible and ethical development of AI. We are using IoT and Big Data Analytics for real-time monitoring of schemes like smart cities and MNREGA. The India Datasets Platform under AI mission will be a landmark milestone in achieving innovative & entitlement-based citizen delivery of services. In order to facilitate quick deployment of emerging technologies, MeitY and other ministries and departments are actively collaborating with private companies through PPP initiatives.
Cybersecurity is a major challenge that e-governance systems face. A cyberattack on a vital online platform run by a government department can paralyze a significant part of the economy. How is the government ensuring the safety of the online systems in an age of growing cyber threats?
Recently we had the Grand Cyber Security challenge launched to get the top class cyber security ecosystem from private stakeholders. To tackle cyber threats, the government has implemented a number of measures. With the objective of promoting security hygiene and alerting users about threats, the Cyber Swachhta Kendras has been started. CERT-In is the nodal agency for monitoring, responding to, and preventing cyber incidents in the country. In addition to this, we conduct regular audits of the online systems to ensure that vulnerabilities in the e-governance systems are addressed.
The government has mandated the storage of critical data within India’s borders. Proper training of government officers, especially those irectly involved in the handling of data and the management of the e-governance systems, is important. To achieve this objective, MeitY regularly undertakes capacity building and awareness programmes to upgrade the cyber skills of government officers.
In the world of information overload, ensuring that authentic information reaches at the correct times has become a major challenge. To counter narratives coloured with malicious propaganda, MeitY, along with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) and Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), has been playing a critical role in maintaining cyber hygiene by conducting analysis and containing as well as blocking the harmful content so as to protect the public, and especially the impressionable youngsters from becoming influenced by misinformation, disinformation and fake news. MeitY is also encouraging and supporting stakeholders including private sector players and SSMIs (Significant Social Media Intermediaries) in spreading cyber-awareness amongst the masses.
The e-governance or online services that the government departments provide are dependent on massive amounts of data. What can be done to improve the collection, analysis, preservation and authentication of the data which backs the country’s online services?
An advanced system of cloud computing is critical for the collection, analysis, preservation, and authentication of data. The government is focusing on the MeghRaj Cloud, which will enable scalable, secure storage and management of government data. Today Meity has more than 23 empanelled cloud service providers (CSP). The government has come up with a Data Governance Policy to ensure standardization and compliance in data handling. AI and data analytics are being leveraged for data insights to improve policymaking and service delivery. The government is also actively using Blockchain for Authentication, which ensures integrity and reduces tampering risks. Then there are the open data platforms for fostering transparency and innovation through open datasets.
(Sanket S Bhondve is an IAS officer, currently serving as the Joint Secretary, Ministry of Electronics & IT. He may be contacted at js.digigov@gov.in)
