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(GIST OF YOJANA) Digital Empowerment through 'Maximum Governance, Minimum Government' [JULY-2019]

(GIST OF YOJANA) Digital Empowerment through 'Maximum Governance, Minimum Government'

[JULY-2019]

Digital Empowerment through 'Maximum Governance, Minimum Government'

Introduction

According to the Report of the Ministry of Electronics & IT, Government of India. ‘India's Trillion Dollar Digital Opportunity’, India has witnessed the second fastest growth rate of digital adoption out of 17 countries of the world over the period of2014-17.
The story of India’s digital transformation is one of an ICT - led development by use of technology that is affordable, inclusive and transformative.
By ensuring digital access, digital inclusion and digital empowerment, the Digital India Programme has harnessed digital technologies to bring about a positive change towards good governance that is easy, economical, transparent and efficient governance.

Background

In fact, it would be correct to say that digital delivery of services to citizens forms the driving force to the next generation growth trajectory towards a robust and knowledge-based economy.
India is now poised for the next phase of growth - creation of tremendous economic value and empowerment of citizens as new digital applications permeate sector after sector.
Digital Empowerment through ‘Maximum Governance, Minimum Government’ is not a mere slogan. Instead, it is a conscious strategy towards ushering forms in governance and transforming India by making governance simple, fast, flexible and effective by application of innovations and technology. This also leads to participative governance, a key element of a responsible democracy.
The aim is not just to reduce the human interface in delivering services to the people but also to enhance the experience of the citizens, while also providing them with enormous opportunities.

Digital India Programme

To achieve this, the Digital India Programme of the Government is playing an important role in empowering citizens.
Through the application of digital technologies, the Government is undertaking specific initiatives to improve the delivery systems to ensure that the benefits of the welfare schemes of the government reach directly to the targeted beneficiaries, including the poorest of the poor in a convenient manner without any pilferage.
The combination of Jandhan bank accounts, mobile phones and digital identity through Aadhaar i.e. JAM trinity is helping the poor to get benefits directly into their bank account.
A total of Rs. 7.34 lakh crore have been disbursed through Aadhaar based Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) to beneficiaries of 439 Government schemes which, have led to saving of over Rs. 1.41 lakh crore cumulatively by March 2019, by removing fictitious claimants.
DBT brings in efficiency, effectiveness, transparency and accountability in the Government system.

Common Services Centres (CSCs)

Common Services Centres (CSCs), as Digital kiosks, are providing more than 350 types of services to citizens in rural areas. CSCs are a unique PPP model where micro- entrepreneurs are creating sustainable livelihoods and bringing about a digital revolution in the villages of India.
A vast network of over 3.45 lakh CSCs, providing online government and non- government services, have created entrepreneurial opportunities for nearly one million village-level entrepreneurs, including over 60,000 women entrepreneurs.
The world’s largest digital literacy programme, Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA), is bridging the digital divide and helping people to access benefits of the digital world. So far, 2.2 crore persons have been imparted digital literacy under the programme.
MyGov is an example of the Government’s commitment towards participative governance, bringing citizens and Government closer to one another by democratizing the decision-making.
Today, MyGov has over 80 lakh users and over 2 lakh submissions have been made in 815 tasks.
The BPO movement for smaller towns with 219 BPO units functioning across 97 small cities and 27 States and UTs is facilitating a balanced regional growth, and creating job opportunities in small towns.

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Outcomes of the digital transformation

The digital transformation resulting from digitisation is all-encompassing, with the enabling IP driven holistic growth of the IT industry consequence that sector-specific
The policy aims to develop India as the strategies developed within silos are not global software product hub, driven by applicable anymore.
Therefore, the Government needs to build public digital platforms to foster innovation, improved commercialisation, sustainable Intellectual Property (IP), promoting technology start-ups and collaboration amongst sectors and to devise and jointly implement policies/ programmes. Emerging Technologies, specialized skill sets.
It also aims at alignment with other Government initiatives, such as, Start-up such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet India, Make in India and Digital India, Skill of things (loTs) and big data analytics are India etc so as to create Indian Software expected to bring in mass disruption.
The Government has to prepare to leverage the opportunities so unleashed. Business products Industry of USD -70-80 billion with direct and indirect employment of -3.5 million by 2025. as usual will not suffice with new emerging technologies having a phenomenal sweep in all sectors with 'winner takes all’ characteristics.
Digital India is embracing change and fostering innovation. To accelerate the disruption, the Government is working closely in all sectors to leverage the opportunities of transformative technology.
To leverage Artificial Intelligence and related emerging technologies in the interest of citizens and businesses, a National Programme on 'Artificial Intelligence' has been envisaged, to be catalysed by the establishment of National Centre on Artificial Intelligence as a hub along with Centres of Excellence.
In order to ensure growth of the digital economy while keeping personal data of citizens secure and protected, the Government is working towards formulation of Personal Data Protection Framework.
The National Policy on Software Products has also been formulated that envisages creation of a robust Indian Software Product development ecosystem, thereby

Way forward

India is leveraging its strength in IT Services and aiming to become a software product nation, the momentum in electronics manufacturing has been maintained. 268 manufacturing units of mobile phones and accessories creating almost 6.7 lakh direct and indirect jobs.
The National Policy on Electronics, 2019 aims to further promote domestic manufacturing and export to achieve a turnover of approx Rs. 26 lakh crore by
2025.
Digital India, utilising the power of digital platforms, has, thus, demonstrated a successful case study, where developing economies, through embracing technologies, will be able to leapfrog towards sustainable and inclusive growth.
Having built a strong foundation of digital infrastructure and vastly expanded digital access and outreach, India is now poised for a robust growth of digital technologies in all sectors of the economy that will lead to creation of up to $1 trillion of economic value from the digital economy in 2025.